UC-NRLF 


LIBRAS  j, 

OF  THE 
UNIVERSITY 
OF 


Raising  Canary-bir 

AS   the  season  for   raising 
is  near  at  hand,  a  few  hin 
initiated  may  be  of  service.     T 
for  mating  canaries  is  the  last 
or  during  the  month  of  March. 
First  of  all,  if  the  birds  are  st 
them  near  each,  other,  though  n< 
!  cage,  for  a  day  or  two,  that  t 


I  the  bathing-dish  is  not  near  the  nest,  as  there 
is  danger  of  the  little  ones  being  thrown  into  it. 


.iary-birds 

0  the  un- 
usual time 

February 

gers,  hang 

1  the  same 
may  get 


FIG.  1.— A   SINGLE   CORDON. 

By  the  time  they  are  two  weeks  old,  their 
feathers  are  pretty  well  out,  and  they  can  be 
assisted  in  gaining  strength  by  taking  the 
nest  from  the  cage  for  a  few  moments,  and 
letting  them  hop  from  your  ringers  to  the 


CANARY  BIRDS. 


iHcmucil 


USEFUL  AND  PRACTICAL  INFORMATION 


BIRD    KEEPERS. 


NEW   YORK: 

WILLIAM  WOOD  &  CO.,  61  WALKER  STREET. 
1869. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1860, 

BY  WILLIAM  WOOD  &  CO., 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States, 
for  the  Southern  uiatrlct  of  New  York. 


B.   CRAIGHEAD,  PRINTEB, 

81,  88,  and  86  Centre  st.,  2T.  T. 


CONTENTS. 


PAQB 
INTRODUCTION V 

CHAPTER   I. 
THE   CANABY  FINCH.— Its  Native  Isle.— Various 

Kinds. — Choice  of  Birds. — Manner  of  Taming        9 

CHAPTER  II. 

BIRD  CAGES.— Different  Kinds.— Wooden  and  Wire 
Cage  for  Toung  Birds. — School  Cage. — Store 
Cage. — Hospital  Cage. — Breeding  Cage. — 
Glass  Cage. — Perches 21 

CHAPTER  in. 
BATHS 31 

CHAPTER  IV. 
POOD  AND  "WATER         .  ...      34 

CHAPTER  Y. 
BREEDING  41 


iv  PREFACE. 

CHAPTER  VL 
To  TEACH  YOUNG  BIRDS  TO  SING        .       . 


CHAPTER  VII. 
AVIAEY  BIRDS  AND  CAGES    ...  67 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
THE  ROOM  AVIARY       .....  82 

CHAPTER  IX 
DISEASES  or  CANARIES  .....  91 

CHAPTER  X. 
WANTS  OF  BIRD  KEEPERS    .       .       .  109 


INTRODUCTION. 


t  are  all  lovers  of  birds — song  birds  espe- 
cially. How  can  we  help  being  so  ?  They 
are  at  once  the  most  lovely,  and  innocent,  and  joy- 
ous of  God's  creatures.  It  is  good  for  us  to  cherish 
this  love — healthful  to  our  souls  as  well  as  our 
bodies : — 

"  To  go  abroad  rejoicing  in  the  joy 
Of  beautiful  and  well  created  things, 
To  thrill  with  the  rich  melody  of  birdt, 
Living  in  their  life  of  music; 
To  see,  and  hear,  and  breathe  the  evidence 
Of  God's  deep  wisdom  in  the  natural  world." 

"Oh  that  I  had  wings  like  a  dove!"  said  the 
Psalmist,  "for  then  would  I  flee  away  and  be  at 
rest,"  and  it  does  seem  that  the  proper  home  of  the 
feathered  choristers  must  be  in  brighter  and  more 
peaceful  regions  than  those  which  are  darkened  and 
deformed  by  earthly  passions  and  desires ;  and  with 
this  feeling  we  are  inclined  to  look  with  indulgence, 
nay,  even  with  some  degree  of  reverence,  upon  the 
superstition  of  the  Indian,  who  worships  his  "  Wakon 
Bird,"  and  believes  it  to  be  a  wanderer  from  "  Happy 
1* 


yi  INTRODUCTION. 

Hunting  Grounds" — a  messenger  from  the  Great 
Spirit  to  His  children  upon  earth. 

"  Lord,"  said  good  Izaak  Walton,  as  he  listened  to 
the  song  of  the  Nightingale,  "  what  music  hast  thou 
provided  for  the  saints  in  heaven,  when  thou  givest 
bad  men  such  music  on  earth  ?  " 

That  the  subject  of  our  little  work  is  one  that  will 
interest  many  readers,  we  can  scarcely  entertain  a 
doubt.  There  are  few  persons  who  have  not,  at 
some  period  or  other  of  their  lives,  nourished  and 
cherished  a  feathered  pet  j  of  one  of  these  "  blythe 
spirits"  the  universal  favorite,  the  Canary,  we  pro- 
pose to  treat  in  the  chapters  of  our  unpretentious 
book. 

A  great  many  people  think  that  to  confine  birds  is 
cruel.  If  it  were  so,  indeed,  few  would  be  the  cage 
birds  one  would  wish  to  see ;  but  happily,  on  the 
contrary,  for  those  who,  like  myself,  are  fond  of  the 
little  songsters,  the  more  we  know  about  them,  the 
more  we  are  satisfied  that  theirs  is  a  happy  prison. 
Not  for  all  birds  by  any  means ;  some  would  break 
their  hearts,  if  confined  in  a  cage.  The  birds  of  pas- 
sage, all  those  that  come  and  go,  should  never  be 
kept  from  the  sunny  skies  they  seek  as  winter  comes. 
But  with  the  Canary,  as  well  as  a  variety  of  other 
birds,  reared  in  cages  and  knowing  nothing  of  that 


INTRODUCTION.  t        vii 

freedom  upon  which  depends  almost  the  existence  of 
their  wilder  brethren,  it  would  be  cruel  to  expose 
them  to  the  misery  of  being  loose,  little,  shivering, 
trembling  strangers,  in  an  unkindly  crowd.  Poor 
little  creatures,  if  one  of  them  does  get  out,  how 
fast  it  flies  to  seek  some  friendly  cage ;  it  knows  not 
the  language,  the  ways,  and  fashion-s  of  the  birds 
around  it,  nor  yet  does  it  always  meet  with  the 
kindest  welcome  from  them.  Besides,  our  canaries 
want  petting — they  have  no  wish,  so  their  gay  song 
tells  us,  to  seek  a  dirty  puddle  instead  of  a  crystal 
bath  j  to  hide  from  the  rain  and  cower  from  the  cold, 
instead  of  hanging  singing  in  a  warm  pleasant  room. 
Most  people  forget  to  reckon  on  the  birds'  social 
habits ;  nor  do  they  give  them  credit  for  half  their 
loving  ways.  Canaries  are  often  wild  and  show  fear 
whenever  approached  by  those  who  have  never 
shown  them  kindness.  This  arises  from  a  natural, 
and  a  very  proper  suspicion,  of  mankind.  Their  in- 
stinct tells  them  that  the  human  race  are  inherently 
savage ;  and  till  they  have  some  convincing  proof 
to  the  contrary,  they  never  change  this,  their  very 
correct  opinion.  To  be  teased,  frightened,  slighted, 
or  neglected,  is  their  too  frequent  fate.  But  we  may 
add  with  a  deep  feeling  of  pleasure,  there  are  "  ex- 
ceptions" to  all  rules,  and  we  know  that  there  are 


INTRODUCTION. 


many,  many  gentle  hearts  who  do  love"  their 
birds—  aye,  and  hold  converse  with  them  too. 

I  have  known  lif  tie  pets  fly  all  in  a  flutter  to  meet 
and  greet  me,  when  really  I  thought  they  would 
have  quite  forgotten  that  they  had  ever  known  me  ; 
and  only  let  any  one  nurse  a  wounded  bird,  and  see 
if  it  forgets  the  benefit  received. 

Besides,  they  are  very  clever.  I  am  sure  if  as 
many  people  lived  sociably  with  birds  as  with  dogs 
and  cats,  we  should  have  soon  a  thousand  proofs  of 
their  sagacious  ways.  Speaking  for  myself,  I  know 
quite  well  by  their  tones  what  my  birds  are  want- 
ing —  sometimes  it  may  be  only  a  kindly  recognition 
of  a  passing  friend  •  but  a  few  days  ago  when  two 
were  fighting  and  we  took  no  notice,  there  was  lit- 
tle doubt  what  the  conquered  wanted  —  she  called  us 
to  her  assistance  as  plainly  as  if  she  had  spoken. 

The  editor  desires  to  acknowledge  her  indebted- 
ness to  the  following  named  works  from  which  this 
book  has  mostly  been  compiled—  the  quotations  are, 
as  near  as  possible,  in  the  exact  words  of  the  origi- 
nals: "Beckstein's  Cage  Birds,"  "Kidd  on  Avia- 
ries," "Adams's  Favorite  Song  Birds,"  "Maling'a 
Song  Birds,"  "Beeton's  Book  of  Home  Pets,"  and 
others. 


CANARY  BIRDS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE    CANARY  FINCH, 

by  Linnaeus,  Fringilla  Canaria, 
because  it  first  came,  as  is  generally 
supposed,  from  the  Canary  Isles,  where  the 
species  is  still  found  in  abundance,  singing 
very  sweetly,  although  not,  perhaps,  so 
scientifically  as  their  richly-attired  and  bet- 
ter instructed  relations.  Voyagers  tell  us 
that  these  wild  birds  of  the  Canary  Isles 
have  mostly  gray  plumage,  and  this  tint 
prevails  to  a  considerable  extent  in  some  of 
the  domesticated  varieties,  which  are  rather 
numerous.  White,  gray,  yellow,  green,  and 


10  CANARY  BIRDS. 

brown,  of  different  shades,  and  in  varying 
proportions,  are  the  common  colors  of  those 
birds  bred  in  confinement ;  how  the  changes 
have  been  produced,  it  is  now  impossible  to 
say;  climate,  food,  and  intermixture  of 
breeds,  have,  no  doubt,  each  and  all  had 
some  effect  in  producing  them,  as  by  a  care- 
ful attention  to  these  matters,  the  latter 
especially,  breeders  in  the  country  may  now 
calculate  with  a  tolerable  degree  of  certainty 
on  the  kind  of  bird  they  are  likely  to  have 
from  certain  parents,  under  certain  circum- 
stances. With  regard  to  climate,  it  has 
been  remarked  by  Adamson,  that  the  cana- 
ry, which  becomes  in  France  nearly  white, 
is,  at  Teneriffe,  almost  brown,  and  this 
agrees  with  the  general  observation  of  na- 
turalists, that  the  covering  of  animals,  be  it 
fur  or  feathers,  becomes  thicker,  and  lighter 
of  color,  in  proportion  to  the  coldness  of 
the  climate  which  they  inhabit.  We  should 
not,  however,  lay  too  much  stress  upon  this 
argument,  for  in  this,  as  in  all  other  northern 


CANARY  BIRDS.  H 

countries  in  which  they  reside,  canaries 
are  so  sheltered  and  protected  from  the 
weather,  that  we  can  scarcely  imagine  it  to 
have  much  effect  upon  the  economy  of  their 
growth  and  structure ;  and  then,  too,  the 
prevalence  amongst  us  of  the  darker-tinted 
birds — greens,  and  cinnamon  browns,  and 
the  like — militates  considerably  against  this 
theory. 

The  exact  date  of  the  introduction  of  the 
canary  into  England  is  not  known ;  it  is 
mentioned  by  Gesner,  who  wrote  in  the  lat- 
ter part  of  the  sixteenth  century,  and  first 
described  by  Aldrovandus,  in  his  "  Ornitho- 
logy," bearing  date  1610  ;  the  bird  was  then 
esteemed  a  great  rarity.  According  to  some 
authors,  the  island  of  Elba  was  the  first 
European  ground  on  which  the  canary  found 
a  resting-place.  A  ship  bound  for  Leghorn, 
they  say,  having  on  board  a  number  of  the 
sweet  songsters,  foundered  near  this  island, 
on  which  the  birds,  set  at  liberty  by  the 
accident,  found  a  refuge,  and  the  climate 


12  CANARY  BIRDS. 

was  so  congenial  to  their  nature,  that  they 
remained  and  bred,  and  would,  probably, 
have  remained  there  to  the  present  day,  had 
not  their  beauty  and  melody  attracted  the 
attention  of  bird-catchers,  who  hunted  them 
so  assiduously,  that  not  a  single  specimen 
was  left  on  the  island.  From  Italy  the 
birds  soon  found  their  way  into  France  and 
Germany,  from  which  latter  country  and 
the  Tyrol,  we  now  derive  our  principal  sup- 
ply. Canary  breeding  and  training  is  there 
conducted  on  a  very  large  scale,  and  in  ac- 
cordance with  well  established  rules  and 
principles.  In  England,  canary  societies 
have  existed  for  upwards  of  a  century,  and 
for  the  last  fifty  years  they  have  had  annual 
shows  and  competitions  for  prizes ;  and  im- 
mense prices  have  been  given  for  prize  cana- 
ries. Thirty  varieties  are  distinguished; 
these  are  separated  into  two  great  divisions, 
the  plain  and  the  variegated ;  the  former 
being  called  Gay  Birds,  or  Gay  Spangles, 
and  the  latter  Fancy  Birds,  or  Mealy  Birds. 


CANARY  BIRDS.  13 

• 
The  latter  are  considered  the  strongest,  and 

have  the  boldest  song.  Jonks,  or  Jonquils, 
is  also  a  term  applied  to  those  of  a  pure  yel- 
low. There  is  also  a  variety  called  the 
Lizard,  the  plumage  of  which  is  of  a  green- 
ish-bronze throughout,  excepting  the  upper 
part  of  the  head,  which  is  covered  by  a 
patch  of  clear  yellow,  and  this  variety  is 
looked  upon  as  the  nearest  of  kin  to  the  ori- 
ginal stock. 

The  Jonquil,  as  its  name  denotes,  is  re- 
quired to  be  of  a  deep  pure  yellow,  entirely 
free  from  any  green  tinge. 

In  the  Mealy  Bird,  the  golden  plumage 
of  back,  breast,  and  head,  appear  frosted 
over,  or  powdered,  through  the  small  feath- 
ers, thus  producing  a  whitish  edge. 

In  breeding  the  Fancy  Birds  great  profi- 
ciency is  shown  in  judicious  pairing.  A 
Mealy  Bird  and  a  Jonquil  being  put 
together,  the  produce  will  not  prove  a  mix- 
ture of  the  qualities  of  the  parent  birds,  but 
the  character  of  one  or  the  other  will  appear 


14  CANARY  BIRDS. 

distinct,  and  the  produce  of  the  nest  will 
probably  show  specimen  of  both  kinds. 
Canaries  which  are  blackish-gray,  or  grayish- 
b-rown  on  the  upper  part  of  the  body,  and 
at  the  lower  part  greenish-yellow,  are  the 
commonest  and  healthiest  birds,  and  have 
deviated  less  from  the  original  stock.  Their 
eyes  are  dark  brown. 

Yellow  and  white  canaries  have  often  red 
eyes,  and  are  not  so  strong.  The  reddish- 
brown  canaries,  with  grayish-brown  eyes, 
are  the  rarest ;  and  in  respect  to  strength  and 
longevity,  occupy  an  intermediate  position 
between  the  other  two  varieties.  The  bird 
is  valuable  in  proportion  to  the  regularity 
with  which  it  is  marked.  Those,  however, 
in  which  the  body  is  yellow  or  white,  and 
the  wings,  tail,  and  head— particularly  if 
crested — yellowish-dun,  are  considered  the 
handsomest  birds.  Next  to  these  are  the 
Golden  Yellow  Canaries,  with  black,  blue, 
or  blackish-gray  head,  wings,  and  tail ;  then 
the  blackish  bird,  with  gray  or  yellow  head 


CANARY  BIRDS.  15 

and  collar;  next  the  Yellow  Canary,  with 
black  or  greenish-yellow  head,  which  in  this 
case  should  have  a  crest.  The  gray,  or 
almost  black  canaries,  with  yellow  breast, 
and  white  head  and  tail,  are  held  in  peculiar 
estimation.  Such  birds  as  are  irregularly 
mottled  or  spotted,  as  well  as  those  uniform 
in  color,  are  considered  as  of  but  little 
value 

The  female  is  hardly  distinguishable  from 
the  male,  except  that  the  plumage  of  the 
latter  is  generally  brighter  in  color.  His 
head,  also,  is  rather  larger  and  longer ;  the 
body  more  slender ;  the  neck  not  so  short ; 
and  the  legs  longer  and  straighter.  Another 
special  characteristic  is,  that  the  yellow  of 
the  temples,  and  round  the  eyes,  is  brighter 
than  in  any  other  part  of  the  body. 

Birds  which  seem  moderately  shy  are 
generally  the  best.  Tame  birds  are  gene- 
rally bought  quite  eagerly,  but  too  great 
quietness  is  often  caused  by  illness,  and  they 
eoon  die.  A  real  good  bird  will  make  a 


16  CANARY  BIRDS. 

great  fuss,  pretending  to  be  a  vast  deal 
shyer  than  he  really  is,  hopping  from  perch 
to  perch,  twisting  his  head  about,  and  hav- 
ing many  airs  and  graces.  Bird  dealers  re- 
commend the  birds  that  sing  loudly ;  and 
this  to  many  is  not  at  all  desirable;  the 
lower  the  tone  the  sweeter  and  prettier 
many  would  think  the  song. 

In  your  choice  of  a  bird  do  as  William 
Kidd  recommends;  "Sacrifice  color  to  ac- 
complishments; you  will  never  repent  it. 
Nature  seldom  gives  us  rare  beauty  and 
great  accomplishments  united."  Do  not, 
however,  decide  too  hastily,  and  examine 
the  bird  on  which  you  fix  your  choice 
before  purchasing.  It  may,  perhaps,  have 
some  defect  in  the  plumage,  which  would 
deteriorate  its  market  Value,  although  in  no 
degree  diminishing  its  worth  as  a  songster 
merely.  Should  the  defect  be  merely  a 
damaged  tail,  it  can  be  easily  remedied  :  you 
have  only  to  draw  the  defective  feathers,  and 
their  place  will  soon  be  supplied  with  new 


CANARY  BIRDS.  17 

ones.  Be  sure  to  see  that  the  legs  and  feet 
of  your  bird  are  clean  and  perfect ;  and  do 
not  leave  it  to  be  sent  home,  but  take  it 
away  with  you,  if  you  have  to  buy  cage 
and  all. 

When  you  have  purchased  a  bird,  carry 
it  home  as  carefully  and  gently  as  possible, 
having  previously  prepared  for  it  a  comfort- 
able cage,  well  furnished  with  seed  and 
water :  into  this  you  must  let  it  step  of  its 
own  accord,  as  it  will  be  very  tenacious  of 
being  touched  or  handled,  until  it  has  grown 
quite  familiar  to  its  new  home  and  those 
about  it.  Place  a  light  in  front  of  its  cage, 
and  the  chances  are  that  it  will  begin  to  sing 
at  once,  especially  if  you  provoke  it  to 
rivalry,  by  whistling  or  playing  some  lively 
air.  Kidd  remarks  that,  "  The  best  trait  in 
the  character  of  the  canary  is,  that  he  will1 
sing  place  him  where  you  may.  These- 
birds  very  seldom  show  a  sulkiness  of  dis-- 
position ;  and  even  if  they  should  do  so,  a 

single  hemp-seed  or  a  morsel  of  chickweed! 

2* 


1 8  CANAR  T  BIRDS. 

will  set  all  to  rights  in  a  moment ;"  and  all 
experience  goes  to  show  that  this  amiability 
of  disposition  is  quite  characteristic  of  this 
bird  of  the  Fortunate  Isles,  whose  nature 
appears  to  be  as  sunny  and  genial  as  the 
clime  from  which  it  originally  came. 

It  is  sometimes  extremely  difficult  to  get 
newly -captured  birds  to  eat  at  all,  partly 
because  that  which  is  offered  to  them  is  not 
quite  what  they  have  been  accustomed  to, 
and  partly,  no  doubt,  on  account  of  grief  at 
their  loss  of  liberty,  and  fear  arising  out  of 
the  strange  scenes  and  circumstances  amid 
which  they  find  themselves.  They  will  not 
unfrequently  refuse  to  take  any  nourish- 
ment, and  will  inevitably  pine  and  die  if 
some  means  are  not  taken  to  induce  them  to 
art.  Dr.  Meyer,  of  Offenbach,  communi- 
•cated  to  Bechstein  the  following  mode  of 
.•getting  over  this  difficulty.  Place  the  bird 
in  the  cage  in  which  it  is  intended  to  keep 
iit,  with  plenty  of  the  proper  food  and  drink 
an  open  vessels ;  let  it  remain  undisturbed 


CANARY  BIRDS.  19 

for  several  hours ;  then  catch  it,  and  im- 
merse it  in  fresh  water ;  after  which,  place 
it  back  in  the  cage,  and  again  leave  it  for 
awhile.  The  employment  of  pruning  its 
wings  and  setting  its  feathers  straight,  will 
divert  its  attention  from  the  great  grief  of 
captivity,  and  its  appetite  being  sharpened 
by  the  bath,  there  is  little  doubt  that  the 
bird  will  soon  take  freely  of  what  is  set  be- 
fore it,  and  become  cheerful  and  animated. 
Those  birds  that  at  first  creep  into  a  corner 
and  sulk  and  refuse  their  food,  are  most 
likely  to  do  well  afterwards;  those  which 
eat  greedily  at  once  of  the  artificial  food, 
frequently  die  from  the  effect  of  the  sudden 
change  of  diet,  or  else  the  unnatural  indif- 
ference to  the  loss  of  liberty  implies  that 
they  have  some  disease  which  impels  them 
to  eat. 

The  following  is  a  new  and  approved 
method  of  taming  birds :  A  portion,  larger 
or  smaller,  is  cut  off  from  the  inner  plume 
of  the  pen-feathers,  so  that  the  bird  cannot 


20  CANARY  BIRDS. 

hurt  itself  if  it  attempts  to  leave  the  hand. 
The  nostrils  of  the  bird  are  then  touched 
with  bergamot,  or  any  other  odorous  oil, 
by  which  it  is  for  a  time  so  stupified  as  to 
perch  quietly  on  the  finger,  or  to  hop  from 
one  finger  to  another.  It  may,  indeed,  at- 
tempt to  fly  away  once  or  twice  ;  but  this  is 
not  often  repeated,  especially  if  the  experi- 
ment be  tried  in  a  dark  place — as,  for  ex- 
ample, behind  a  curtain,  which  offers  the 
further  advantage,  that  if  the  bird  fall,  it  is 
not  likely  to  hurt  itself.  As  soon  as  it  sits 
quietly  on  one  finger,  another  finger  must 
be  placed  in  such  position  as  to  cause  the 
bird  to  step  upon  it,  and  so  soon  as  it  is  ac- 
customed to  hop  quietly  from  one  finger  to 
another,  the  main  difficulty  is  overcome. 
For  if  when  the  bird  is  gradually  aroused 
from  its  stare  of  stupefaction  he  perceives 
that  its  teacher  does  not  use  it  roughly,  he 
will  become  quite  tame. 


CHAPTER  II. 

BIRD     CAGES. 

purchased  a  bird,  the  first  consi- 
deration  is,  which  is  the  best  kind  of 
bird  cages. 

Of  wooden  cages  those  made  of  mahogany 
are  decidedly  the  best,  as  they  are  less  likely 
to  harbor  insects  than  any  other.  If  soft 
wood  is  the  material  it  should  invariably 
have  two  or  three  coats  of  paint  over  it. 
Green  is  the  best  color ;  but  the  wires  of  a 
cage  should  never  be  painted  green,  as  the 
metal  being  non-absorbent,  the  color  will 
loosen  and  peel  off,  and  being  pecked  at  and 
eaten  by  the  bird  will  cause  its  death.  Wire 
cages  of  bell  or  pagoda  shape  are  mostly 
used  in  this  country,  and  are  superior  to 
wooden  cages,  being  easily  cleaned,  and  are 
light  and  elegant  in  appearance.  The  bot- 


22  CANARY  BIRDS. 

• 

torn  of  a  wire  cage  has  a  projecting  rim  or 
ledge  around  it,  which  keeps  the  dirt  and 
seeds  thrown  out  by  the  bird  from  making 
a  litter ;  and  as  it  is  simply  fastened  to  the 
upper  part  by  hooks  and  catches,  it  is  easily 
removed  for  the  purpose  of  being  cleaned. 
Care  must  be  taken  that  the  bottom  is 
securely  hooked  to  the  top,  for  many  a  bird 
has  been  lost  by  its  dropping  off  after  the 
cage  was  hung  up,  and  thus  releasing  the 
bird.  The  receptacles  for  food  and  water  in 
the  wire  cage  are  very  safe  and  convenient ; 
barrels  open  on  one  side  are  attached  to  the 
side,  not  hung  below,  and  glass  cups  set  in 
them,  and  the  open  side  turned  inward. 

For  young  birds,  which  are  apt  to  hurt 
themselves  against  the  wires  by  fluttering 
and  sporting  about,  a  NET  CAGE  should  be 
provided.  This  can  easily  be  made  of  an  old 
common  cage  out  of  which  the  wires  have 
been  taken,  and  a  covering  of  fine  net  sub- 
stituted. 

What  are  called  SCHOOL  CAGES  are  some 


CANARY  BIRDS.  23 

times  used  for  a  number  of  birds.  These 
are  boxes  having  a  wire  front,  and  solid 
back  and  sides,  divided  into  a  number  of 
compartments,  each  of  which  is  tenanted  by 
a  single  bird,  to  which  access  may  be  ob- 
tained by  means  of  a  little  door  at  the  back 
of  its  dormitory.  There  may  be  several 
tiers  of  these  apartments,  and  a  single  slid- 
ing bottom  and  feeding  trough  does  for 
each  tier,  going  through  the  whole  length  : 
thus,  where  it  is  desirable  to  economize 
space,  they  may  rise  one  above  another  like 
a  nest  of  drawers,  and  form  a  sort  of  bird- 
barracks.  A  single  preceptor,  a  good  lark 
or  nightingale,  may  be  the  drill  sergeant  for 
the  whole  company  of  occupants,  however 
numerous ;  the  little  pupils,  not  being  able 
to  see  each  other,  will  be  all  the  more  likely 
to  give  due  attention  to  the  music  lessons. 

A  STORE  CAGE,  with  wooden  back  and 
sides,  wire  front,  and  cloth  or  calico  top, 
made  about  two  feet  long,  and  six  inches 
high  and  wide,  will  be  found  useful  to  put 


24  CANARY  BIRDS. 

newly  caught  birds  into  ;  having  no  height 
to  fly,  they  cannot  well  hurt  themselves. 

HOSPITAL  CAGES,  in  which  to  place  sick 
or  wounded  birds,  are  very  necessary  where 
several  birds  are  kept.  A  good  plan  is  to 
take  the  wires  entirely  out  of  a  cage  from 
eight  to  twelve  inches  square,  and  sew  round 
the  frame,  both  top  and  sides,  a  tight -strained 
piece  of  canvas  or  flannel.  The  floor  should 
be  covered  with  bran  or  coarse  oatmeal,  this 
being  cooling  as  well  as  soft ;  everything  of 
wool  is  objectionable,  on  account  of  the 
fibre  or  hairs  which  twist  round  the  claws, 
and  if  not  removed  will  tighten  and  cut  off 
the  toes. 

The  perches  should  be  movable,  that  they 
may  be  taken  out  and  cleaned.  If  the  bird's 
leg  is  wounded,  the  perches  should  all  be 
removed  from  the  cage ;  but  if  it  is  the  wing 
that  is  affected,  one  perch  would  be  advisa- 
ble. 

-BREEDING  CAGES  are  best  made  of  ma- 
hogany or  some  polished  wood,  with  one  end 


CANARY  BIRDS.  2 5 

as  well  as  the  front  of  wire.  Drawers  are 
objectionable,  as  the  grating  of  removing 
them  is  injurious  to  young  birds,  but  the 
best  way  is  to  lay  a  piece  of  oil  cloth  or 
stiff  brown  paper  on  the  floor  of  the  cage 
already  covered  with  sand ;  the  paper  can 
be  drawn  out,  cleaned,  and  replaced. 
"Wooden  boxes  for  the  nests  can  be  hung  at 
least  half  way  up,  and  material  for  the  nests, 
such  as  raw  cotton  or  hair,  supplied. 

GLASS  CAGES  are  bright  and  gay ;  the  ma- 
terial is  capable  of  being  wrought  into  beau- 
tiful forms  and  combinations,  making  a  de- 
lightful miniature  crystal  palace.  But 
though  elegant  and  easily  kept  clean,  yet 
there  is  danger  attending  them,  as  the  slight- 
est chip  from  the  glass  might  produce  death, 
and  if  the  bird  can  reach  the  putty,  he  will 
eat  it  and  die. 

The  square  or  oblong  wooden  cages  are 
simple  and  common,  and  the  best  to  hang 
up  in  an  aviary.  They  are  convenient  when 
made  eighteen  inches  high  and  wide,  and 


26  CANARY  BIRDS. 

just  the  width  of  a  window,  in  which  it  is 
very  nice  to  place  them.  If  one  end  has 
glass  sides  for  the  bath,  the  amusement  of 
watching  the  birds  will  be  very  great,  A 
cage  like  this  will  hold  two  dozen  birds.  In 
drawing-rooms  it  would  look  well  to  have 
the  wood  match  the  furniture  or  the  window 
frame ;  whatever  is  the  wood  it  must  be 
solid,  with  no  veneers  or  inlaying  in  any 
part  that  the  birds  can  get  at. 

These  cages  can  have  an  eating-room  at 
one  end,  with  the  walls  wholly  or  partly  of 
glass  outside  the  wire  to  keep  the  seed  in, 
or  they  may  be  supplied  with  food  boxes.  I 
think,  however,  the  two  shut-in  apartments, 
one  at  each  end  for  food  and  bathing,  is  a 
good  arrangement.  A  long,  well -polished 
round  perch  should  run  along  the  front  and 
back  of  the  cage,  the  front  next  the  room 
particularly,  because  if  the  birds  are  tame 
they  will  probably,  when  they  want  any- 
thing, come  and  sit  in  one  long  line  along 
the  front,  looking  at  their  mistress,  and  mak 


CANARY  BIRDS.  27 

ing  their  meaning  generally  quite  clear  to 
her. 

Nothing  adds  so  much  to  the  birds'  de- 
light, as  well  as  to  their  beauty,  as  to  have 
a  sort  of  shelf  about  five  inches  wide,  on 
which  a  box  full  of  roses,  myrtles,  and  other 
plants  may  stand,  forming  a  hedge  of  foliage 
between  them  and  the  window. 

PERCHES  should  be  round  and  polished, 
fitting  into  niches  or  between  the  wires. 
Polished  deal  or  maple  is  the  best  material, 
after  cane,  which  is  at  once  a  natural  round 
perch  for  the  bird's  foot  to  grasp,  and  per- 
fectly light  and  easily  cleaned.  The  perches 
should  be  kept  perfectly  clean  ;  after  wash- 
ing them  with  yellow  soap  and  water  every 
day,  they  should  never  be  returned  to  the 
cage  until  perfectly  dry.  They  should  not, 
however,  be  dried  too  quickly  by  heat  as 
that  would  warp  them.  They  should  be 
carefully  arranged  into  the  cage,  so  as  not 
to  be  just  over  each  other.  A  good  way  is 
to  have  one  across  the  front,  another  across 


28  CANARY  BIRDS. 

the  back,  another  higher  up,  further  in  the 
cage,  and  another  quite  near  the  top.  The 
birds  like  the  high  perches  best,  and  the 
higher  they  roost  the  better.  Another  ad- 
visable plan  in  bell  cages  is  to  put  a  perch 
from  the  water  to  the  seed  cup,  another 
higher  up,  also  across  the  cage. 

The  cage  will  need  some  attention  every 
day,  and  twice  a  week  the  bottom  should  be 
detached  and  washed,  being  careful  to  dry 
it  thoroughly,  and  cover  it  with  fine  river 
sand,  or  gravel,  which  can  be  purchased  at 
the  bird  stores,  or  procured  from  the  shore 
of  the  river.  It  is  essential  to  the  health  of 
the  bird,  and  must  not  be  marine  sand,  as 
salt  is  injurious. 

The  practice  of  hanging  birds  out  at  a 
window  in  a  small  cage  open  on  all  sides,  and 
so  fully  exposed  alike  to  the  burning  rays 
of  the  sun  and  the  chilling  winds,  cannot  be 
too  strongly  reprehended.  Great  suffering 
must  be  at  times  endured  by  the  little  pri- 
soners, whose  exposure,  when  in  a  wild 


CANAEY  BIKDS.  2  9 

state,  to  the  atmospheric  influences,  is  coun- 
teracted by  the  exercise  of  limb  and  muscle, 
which  it  is  unable  to  take  in  the  cage ;  this, 
therefore,  should  always  be  covered  at  the 
top  when  the  sun  is  shining  very  brightly, 
and  muffled  at  the  side  on  which  the  wind 
sets  with  green  baize,  or  other  thick  material, 
in  dull  and  gusty  weather.  In  wet  weather 
the  cage  should  not  be  put  out  at  all,  except 
now  and  then  during  a  gentle  summer 
shower,  which  is  likely  to  be  succeeded  by 
sunshine. 

Leaving  cage  birds  to  the  care  of  servants 
cannot  be  too  strongly  reprehended ;  by 
these  they  are  generally  considered  as  a  trou- 
ble and  a  nuisance,  and  their  destruction,  if 
it  be  not  hastened,  is  seldom  guarded  against, 
for  "the  sooner  they  are  out  of  the  way  the 
better."  Let  the  lady  feed  and  tend  her  pet 
canary,  or  other  sweet  songster,  herself  regu- 
larly ;  ay,  let  her  clean  out  its  cage,  too,  or, 
at  least,  see  that  it  is  done,  and  so  repay  in 

some  slight  degree   the  debt  of  gratitude 
3* 


30  CANARY  BIRDS. 

which  she  owes  the  bird,  kept  a  prisoner  for 
her  gratification. 

These  remarks  have  been  forced  from  us 
by  a  keen  sense  of  the  wrongs  and  injuries 
to  which  our  feathered  friends  are  constantly 
subjected,  arising  from  an  observation  of  the 
vast  amount  of  unnecessary  suffering  en- 
tailed upon  them  by  carelessness  more  than 
heartlessness.  "We  are  persuaded  that  many 
of  the  tears  which  have  been  shed  over  dead 
birds,  have  proceeded  as  much  from  contri- 
tion for  neglect,  as  from  sorrow  for  the  loss 
sustained ;  and  our  fair  readers  will,  we 
trust,  pardon  us  if  we  remind  them  in  the 
words  of  Thomas  Hood,  that, 

"  Evil  is  wrought  by  want  of  thought, 
As  much  as  by  want  of  heart." 

The  cage  should  never,  in  winter,  be  left 
in  a  room  without  fire. 


CHAPTER  III. 

BATHS. 

tribs  like  to  have  a  good  depth  of  water 
to  bathe  in  ;  at  the  same  time,  of  course, 
they  do  not  wish  to  be  drowned.  If  birds 
are  ill,  a  bath  seems  to  be  their  most  univer- 
sal remedy ;  they  are  hydropathists.  A 
bird  looks  mopy,  and  then  ensues  a  grand 
bathing;  a  hearty  lunch  follows,  and  the 
patient  brushes  up  and  returns  to  active  life. 
If  a  newly  bought  or  unhappy  bird  can  be 
induced  to  bathe,  it  is  the  best  of  signs  that 
it  is  getting  better. 

Canaries  should  be  daily  supplied  with 
fresh  water  for  a  bath ;  they  will  not  bathe 
in  stale  or  dirty  water.  Procure  from  the 
bird-store,  or  china-store,  an  article  made  on 
purpose  for  birds,  bathing-tubs ;  or,  if  una- 
ble to  get  one  of  them,  a  common  vegetable 


32  CANARY  BIRDS. 

dish  of  small  size  will  answer ;  one  that  will 
easily  pass  through  the  cage-door,  as  some 
owners  never  take  the  bird  out  of  the  cage. 
After  the  little  pet  has  bathed,  dry  the  cage 
with  a  soft  towel ;  first  taking  out  the  tub, 
which  should  never  be  left  in  the  cage,  as 
few  birds  take  more  than  one  bath  in  a  day. 
If  the  bird  is  in  a  wire  cage  which  can  be 
detached  from  the  bottom,  it  is  a  very  good 
plan,  which  was  practised  by  a  friend  of  the 
writer.  She  unhooked  the  bottom  of  her 
cage  every  day,  and  lifted  off  the  top  (the 
bird  being  on  the  highest  perch),  and  set  it 
on  the  floor  over  the  bird's  bath-tub,  filled 
with  fresh  water.  The  little  fellow  seemed 
to  like  it,  for  he  never  failed  to  bathe  imme- 
diately, and  splashed  the  water,  hopped 
away,  returned  and  took  another  dip,  and 
sometimes  several  plunges.  The  cage  was 
then  fastened  together  again,  and  was  per- 
fectly dry.  Some  care  is,  of  course,  neces- 
sary to  prevent  his  getting  out,  but  it  will 
be  no  trouble  after  a  little  practice.  The 


CANARY  BIRDS.  33 

greatest  danger  in  this  plan  resulted  sadly  in 
a  recent  case.  The  lady  did  not  fasten  the 
top  and  bottom  together  securely,  and  after 
the  cage  was  hung  from  the  window  the 
bottom  dropped  off  and  the  bird  flew  away 
out  of  her  sight.  In  aviaries,  glass  bathing- 
pans  are  sometimes  used  ;  they  can  be  hung 
up  in  a  wire  basket,  like  those  used  for 
flowers,  in  the  front  of  an  aviary,  where  a 
little  splashing  is  likely  to  do  no  harm ;  but 
when  the  birds  are  in  a  room  in  a  large 
cage,  a  glass  house  in  which  the  bath  can 
stand  is  very  nice.  Have  a  common  square 
bird  cage,  glazed,  the  floor  being  covered 
with  sand,  and  a  bath  placed  within  it :  we 
can  thus  have  the  fullest  amusement  in 
watching  the  birds.  If  some  shells  are  put 
into  the  water,  the  pretty  creatures  will 
stand  on  them,  balancing  on  the  edge,  dash- 
ing down  their  heads,  and  fluttering  their 
wings  in  the  water  in  an  ecstasy  of  delight. 


CHAPTER  IY. 

FOOD  AND  WATER. 

fott)£t)Cr  much  we  may  feel  inclined  to 
give  our  pets  plenty  of  such  dainties 
as  sugar,  cake,  and  other  rich  food  that  we 
know  Dickey  is  as  fond  of  as  any  boy  of 
sweets,  yet  it  will  not  do  for  us  to  forget  that 
plain  simple  diet  is  far  more  likely  to  keep 
him  in  good  health. 

It  is  easy  enough  to  accustom  canaries  to 
eat  and  enjoy  whatever  comes  to  table,  but 
in  canaries  as  well  as  children,  in  so  doing 
we  lay  the  foundation  of  future  disease,  and 
early  death.  While,  on  the  contrary,  poor 
people  who  are  not  acquainted  with  even  the 
names  of  these  delicacies,  succeed  in  rearing 
healthy,  lively,  and  handsome  birds. 

The  best  regular  daily  food  for  the  canary 
is  a  mixture  of  rape  and  canary  seed,  with 


CANARY  BIEDS.  35 

a  few  hemp-seed,  more  in  winter  than  in 
summer,  as  it  is  oily  and  heating.  There 
have  been  many  opinions  on  the  subject  of 
giving  birds  hemp-seed.  It  certainly  does 
tend,  homoeopathically,  to  shorten  the  dura- 
tion of  their  lives ;  but  still,  strange  though 
true,  they  cannot  live  without  it.  It  warms 
their  stomach,  and  possesses  an  oleaginous 
peculiarity  of  flavor,  which  mixing  with  the 
other  food,  forms  a  good  general  diet.  It 
must  be  given  sparingly.  It  is  greyish 
brown  outside,  and  has  a  hard  shell  that 
the  birds  when  weakly,  or  quite  young, 
are  not  able,  to  break;  it  should  therefore 
be  slightly  cracked  before  being  given  to 
such  birds.  It  is  white  inside,  and  tastes 
like  a  nut.  The  birds  are  so  fond  of  it 
that  they  will  take  it  from  the  hand  when 
they  will  not  any  other  food. 

Eape-seed  is  a  round  blackish-brown  lit- 
tle seed  with  a  bright  yellow  kernel,  looking 
like  the  yelk  of  an  egg. 

Canary-seed  is  the   produce  of  Canary 


36  CANARY  BIKDS. 

grass,  and  should  be  hard,  bright,  and  of  a 
brownish-yellow  color,  and  look  white  and 
flowery  when  broken  through. 

It  is  essential  that  seeds  should  be  kept 
where  mice  cannot  get  at  them.  Birds  have 
a  horror  of  seed  that  mice  have  been  among ; 
in  fact,  they  will  not  eat  it  unless  they  are 
very  hungry.  A  bottle  or  china  jar  with  a 
cover  is  best  to  store  them  in.  Birds  have 
been  almost  starved  to  death  by  having 
seeds  given  to  them  that  had  the  inside  eaten 
out  by  mice,  while  the  outward  appearance 
of  the  seeds  was  entire. 

Oats  or  oatmeal  may  be  given  with  the 
seeds,  or  bread  or  barley  meal  moistened 
with  milk,  given  fresh  every  day.  In  sum- 
mer canaries  should  be  supplied  with  green 
food — cabbage,  salad,  celery,  groundsel,  tur- 
nip tops,  chick-weed,  water-cress,  if  well 
washed,  and  in  winter  with  pieces  of  sweet 
apple.  They  will  also  relish  occasionally  a 
little  boiled  carrot  or  cauliflower.  Sugar  at 
rare  intervals  will  not  hurt  them,  but  the 


CANARY  BIRDS.  37 

less  of  it  the  better ;  they  enjoy  water-cracker 
or  pilot  bread  suspended  in  their  cage,  or 
stale  bread  grated  may  be  given  to  them. 
The  English  books  do  not  mention  a  com- 
mon appendage  to  an  American  cage ;  a  cut- 
tle-fish bone  is  hung  in  the  cage  or  placed 
between  the  wires,  and  the  bird  often  resorts 
to  it  for  the  lime  it  contains,  and  apparently 
to  sharpen  its  beak.  Birds  waste  their 
seed  terribly,  and  if  they  can  get  into  the 
seed  cups  they  scatter  it  about  and  spoil  it ; 
some  people  have  a  cover  to  the  cup  with 
small  round  holes  in  it,  or  a  coarse  wire 
gauze  over  it.  It  is  less  trouble  to  feed  birds 
on  seeds  as  a  general  rule,  and  one  author 
says :  "It  seems  to  me  the  most  plain  course 
to  take — and  my  own  birds  have,  generally, 
never  tasted  anything  but  seeds  and  vegeta- 
bles, with  a  little  egg,  or  a  few  stale  bread 
crumbs,  for  weeks  and  months  together."  In 
the  case  of  both  hemp  and  rape-seed,  it 
must  be  remembered  that  they  are  heating 

food,  and  contain  a  large  amount  of  oil.     In 
4 


88  CANARY  BIRDS. 

the  summer,  birds  having  as  much  green 
food  as  they  like,  often  do  not  eat  a  great 
deal  of  seed ;  but  where  they  are  fed  entire- 
ly on  seed,  it  would  be  necessary  to  make  a 
marked  difference  between  summer  and 
winter  diet  When  birds  are  exposed  to 
some  cold,  have  exercise  and  green  food,  the 
rape  and  hemp,  in  the  proportion  of  one  to 
three  parts  of  canary  seed,  will  seldom  be 
found  too  much.  An  old  bird  brought  up 
without  hemp,  would  suffer  were  it  given  to 
him. 

The  seed  box  should  be  cleaned  out  daily, 
the  husks  of  the  seeds  blown  away,  and  the 
good  returned  to  the  box.  It  is  well  to  see 
at  night  that  the  birds  have  food  enough  for 
the  next  morning's  breakfast,  if  they  are 
not  fed  in  the  morning  before  daylight; 
great  injury  has  been  done  by  forgetfulnesa 
of  birds'  sarly  habits,  and  a  few  hours'  wait- 
ing for  Jood  in  the  morning,  especially  in 
the  caac.  of  nestlings,  is  most  severely  felt. 
Very  /tften,  indeed,  it  gives  a  check  from 


t  CANARY  BIRDS.  39 

which  they  do  not  recover.  A  bird's  day  is 
from  sunrise  to  sunset. 

A  cage  bird  is  very  liable  to  suffer  from 
thirst ;  he  has  scattered  all  the  water  from 
the  cup,  and  it  not  being  replenished  more 
than  once  a  day,  he  becomes  exhausted  and 
cannot  eat.  No  owner  of  a  bird  should 
retire  at  night  without  seeing  that  the  water 
cup  is  supplied.  The  fixtures  to  the  bell 
and  pagoda-shaped  wire  cages  are  much 
safer  for  the  bird  than  the  hanging  glasses, 
which  have  doubtless  killed  many  birds,  and 
caused  the  greatest  suffering  in  others,  from 
the  water  in  them  being  too  low  to  be  reached. 

GERMAN  PASTE. — Bruise  in  a  large  mor- 
tar, or  on  a  table  with  a  rolling-pin,  a  pint, 
or  quart,  as  may  be  required,  of  rape-seed, 
in  such  a  manner  that  you  may  blow  the 
chaff  away;  to  this  add  a  good-sized  piece 
of  stale  bread,  reducing  the  whole  to  pow- 
der, and  well  mixing  together:  put  them  in 
a  wooden  box,  which  should  be  kept  from 
the  sun. 


40  CANAP-  -X3£3  i 

A  tea.-,;"  .i.u  '>-  r,  -  »-.,uur,  with  the 
addition  01  irf  •«•  .*aru  yelk  of  egg,  and  a 
few  drops  01  water,  will  make  an  excellent 
food  for  young  birds;  to  the  old  ones  it  may 
be  given  dry.  The  powder  must  not  be 
kept  more  than  two  weeks,  as  the  rape-seed 
is  apt  to  turn  sour,  so  that  when  the  water 
is  put  to  it  it  smells  like  mustard.  It  is 
best  to  make  a  small  quantity  of  this  paste 
every  day ;  under  such  treatment  young 
birds  grow  rapidly.  Stale  sponge  cake, 
rubbed  to  powder,  with  hard  white  of  egg, 
is  a  good  food  for  birds  for  two  or  three 
days  after  being  taken  from  their  parents. 

In  the  way  of  live  food  throw  in  occasion- 
ally ants'  eggs,  small  red  worms,  spiders,  etc. 
When  the  windows  are  kept  open  in  sum- 
mer, hundreds  of  flies,  gnats,  and  other 
minute  ephemera,  will  find  their  way  into 
aviary  cages  and  aviary  rooms,  and  no  small 
amusement  is  it  to  watch  the  gyrations  of 
the  birds  as  they  topple  over  to  catch  their 
prey. 


CHAPTER  Y. 

BREEDING. 

£  propagation  of  canaries  is  attended 
with  many  difficulties  and  disappoint- 
ments, which  have  not  been  diminished  by 
the  many  expedients  to  obviate  them.  For 
pairing,  young  males,  of  from  two  to  five 
years  old,  are  usually  selected;  and  expe- 
rience shows,  that  if  such  breed  with  females 
older  than  themselves,  the  majority  of  the 
brood  will  consist  of  males.  Old  birds  may 
be  recognised  by  the  projecting  blackish 
scales  of  the  legs,  and  by  their  strong  claws. 
Good  breeding  birds  are  rare  and  costly.. 
Both  males  and  females  have  their  faults 
of  temper  or  constitution,  and  it  is  best  for 
the  amateur  to  get  rid  of  faulty  birds,  and 
to  supply  their  places  with  others,  for  none  = 


42  CANARY  BIRDS. 

of  the  corrections  proposed  are  entirely 
effectual. 

To  procure  handsome  young  ones,  the 
best  method  is,  to  allow  only  such  birds  to 
pair  as  are  both  of  the  same  color,  and  them- 
selves clearly  marked ;  though,  of  course,  in 
large  aviaries,  this  precaution  cannot  be 
taken.  Greenish  or  brownish,  paired  with 
light-yellow  birds,  often  produce  very  hand- 
some offspring.  One  rule,  however,  may  be 
laid  down  as  invariable ;  not  to  allow  two 
crested  birds  to  pair,  as  the  young  ones  are 
almost  always  bald,  or  in  some  way  dis- 
figured on  the  head. 

Canaries  begin  to  pair  about  the  middle 
•of  March  or  April,  and  may  be  allowed  to 
•do  so  either  in  a  room  or  cage.  Wash  their 
breeding  cages  well  and  thoroughly  with 
.soft  or  strong  black  soap  and  water,  both 
inside  and  out,  and  particularly  in  all  the 
•  corners,  crevices,  and  joinings,  of  the  cage  ; 
>to  get  at  which  you  must  use  a  painter's 
'brush,  and  rub  and  press  it  well  with  the 


CANARY  BIRDS.  43 

soap  suds  into  all  the  crevices  and  corners, 
for  in  these  places  lurk  the  little  minute 
vermin  which  destroy  more  birds  in  the 
breeding  season  than  all  other  causes  put 
together; — for  the  same  reason  also,  never 
allow  the  nest  boxes  to  be  made  out  of  the 
corners  or  any  other  part  of  the  breeding 
cage,  nor  be  fixed  to  it ;  but  have  moveable 
boxes  to  hang  on  hooks  or  nails,  as  you 
cannot  by  any  possibility  keep  them  free 
from  these  destructive  vermin,  unless  you 
can  take  out  the  nest  boxes,  and  wash  them 
clean  inside  and  out;  burning  the  dirty 
nests ;  and  giving  them  a  fresh  clean  box 
and  nest  also. 

It  is  a  good  plan  to  cover  the  floor  thickly, 
at  first,  with  sand,  and  then,  if  absolutely 
necessary,  the  top  can  be  raked  off ;  a  slide 
is  preferable  to  a  drawer,  which  is  open  to 
the  very  grave  objection  that  it  affords  a 
harbor  for  insects  to  lodge.  You  should 
have  two  slides,  which  is  simply  a  smooth 
board,  that  they  may  be  cleaned  and  dried 


44  CANARY  BIRDS. 

by  turns.  If  one  keeps  a  cage  both  clean 
and  quiet  for  five  weeks,  it  will  be  found  no 
easy  task. 

Place  the  breeding-cages  in  an  airy  and 
light  room ;  and  if  the  morning  sun  shines 
into  the  room  for  two  or  three  hours,  it  will 
be  much  the  better.  Avoid  draughts  of  air, 
for  young  callow  birds  are  tender,  and  can- 
not stand  cold  streams  of  fresh  air.  In  fine 
weather,  open  one  of  the  windows,  an  hour 
or  two  early  in  the  morning,  when  the  sun 
shines,  and  in  hot  weather  leave  it  open  the 
greater  part  of  the  day,  and  also  for  a  por- 
tion of  the  night,  provided  you  prevent 
draughts  by  keeping  the  doors  closed.  Take 
care  the  window  has  a  secure  wire  guard. 

The  grand  principle  for  you  to  observe  is 
an  even  temperature,  for  too  much  heat  is 
as  much  to  be  avoided  as  too  little ;  the  for- 
mer, with  want  of  good  air,  making  the  hens 
sickly,  producing  weakening  perspirations, 
and  breeding  very  weak  birds. 

The  pair  which  are  designed  to  breed  to- 


CANARY  BIRDS.  45 

gether  should  be  put  for  a  week  into  a  small 
cage,  before  being  removed  to  the  large 
breeding-cage.  If  a  male  is  to  be  mated 
with  two  females,  the  females  should  be 
previously  confined  in  a  small  cage,  till 
they  have  learned  to  agree.  In  this  case, 
the  breeding-cage  should  be  divided  into 
two  parts,  by  a  partition,  in  which  is  a 
communication,  closed  by  a  sliding-door. 
The  male  is  first  put  with  one  of  the  females 
into  one  of  the  compartments,  with  the  door 
of  communication  shut.  "When  she  has  laid, 
he  is  to  be  taken  away  and  put  into  the 
other  compartment  with  the  second  female. 
When  she  has  also  laid  her  eggs,  the  door 
may  be  left  permanently  open,  and  the  male 
allowed  to  pass  from  one  to  the  other,  and 
they  will  not  be  jealous  of  each  other  if  they 
were  old  friends.  In  a  room  full  of  canaries, 
the  proportion  of  males  to  females  should  be 
one  to  two,  or  even  three.  Each  male  will 
at  first  select  a  mate,  with  whom  he  will 
always  continue  on  the  most  affectionate 


46  CANARY  BIRDS. 

terms.  But  he  will  also  pair  with  other 
females,  without  afterwards  troubling  him 
self  much  with  either  them  or  their  eggs. 
It  is  noticed,  that  from  unions  such  as  these, 
the  largest  broods  and  the  best  birds  are 
produced.  But  we  lose  in  these  unions  one 
source  of  pleasure  to  the  bird-keeper:  for 
who  would  like  to  lose  that  prettiest  of 
sights,  when  the  forwardest  nestling  arrives 
at  the  perch,  and  sits  between  its  parents, 
fluttering  its  little  wings,  and  being  fed  by 
them  alternately,  in  the  midst  of  busy  and 
delighted  twittering.  Of  course,  when  one 
bird  is  the  father  of  several  young  families, 
there  is  not  much  chance  of  his  being  much 
at  home  with  any  of  them  ;  and  the  mother 
has  no  business  to  be  always  off  her  nest,  as 
she  must  be,  to  supply  a  strong  brood  all 
by  herself,  with  food.  Cheerfulness,  too,  is 
an  important  thing  in  a  bird  cage,  and  a 
poor  little  hen,  toiling  on  all  alone,  is  by  no 
means  a  lively  sight.  When  the  females 
can  get  at  their  rivals,  a  general  skirmish 


CANARY  BIRDS.  47 

terminates  in  torn  nests.  One  little  canary 
hen  invariably  flew  off  her  nest  in  the  most 
reckless  manner,  and  went  dashing  after  her 
most  particular  enemy  whenever  she  passed 
near  her,  and,  of  course,  these  sudden  antics 
were  very  dangerous,  both  to  eggs  and 
young.  When  the  birds  are  about  to  build, 
strew  fine  moss  and  wool  on  the  floor  of  the 
cage,  or  have  two  little  net-bags  filled  with 
soft  dry  moss  or  grass,  free  from  stalks,  and 
a  little  soft  wool  or  hair,  which  is  better 
short,  as  long  hairs  sometimes  get  caught 
about  a  bird's  foot.  A  few  nice  little  fea- 
thers is  also  a  great  boon,  and  some  soft 
down  for  lining.  I  think  it  best  to  have 
two  bags,  putting  that  with  the  moss  in  first ; 
but  the  bags  should  be  hung  outside  the 
wires,  to  prevent,  not  only  entanglements, 
but  considerable  waste  of  strength,  as  in  one 
case  the  birds  dragged  up  forcibly  the  whole 
bag  into  their  nursery.  Jenny  thought  she 
was  conveying  her  nest  up  wholesale,  and 
she  meant  to  jump  upon  it  and  scoop  out  a 


48  CANARY  BIRDS. 

hole.  Make  the  bags  yourself;  do  not  buy 
them  ready  prepared,  as  much  of  the  com- 
fort of  the  brood  depends  on  perfect  cleanli- 
ness. It  is  absolutely  essential  that  all 
•bought  materials  should  be  thoroughly 
baked  or  scalded  before  they  are  used,  to 
destroy  vermin  concealed  in  them. 

One  cannot  well  see  the  shape  of  these 
insects  with  the  naked  eye ;  but,  with  a 
magnifying  glass,  they  resemble  somewhat 
the  bug  species.  If  you  kill  them  on  white 
paper,  it  is  stained  with  blood ;  in  fact,  it  is 
evident  that  they  wholly  subsist  on  the 
blood,  which  they  extract  by  slow  degrees 
from  the  vitals  of  those  little  songsters. 
Hence  arises  much  disappointment  as  well 
as  vexation  during  the  breeding  season. 
The  poor  hens  often  get  blamed  for  neglect ; 
but  are  not  such  continuous  torments  enough 
to  make  the  birds  quit  their  nests  even  when 
the  young  ones  have  been  formed  in  their 
shells  ?  These  little  vermin,  which  you  can 
scarcely  see  with  the  naked  eye,  so  com- 


CANARY  BIRDS.  49 

pletely  worry  the  poor  hen,  that  she  can  sit 
no  longer  on  her  eggs. 

On  going  into  my  breeding-room,  I  have 
found,  in  one  or  two  instances,  hens  dead  on 
their  eggs;  the  poor  things  were  mere 
skeletons.  On  examination,  I  found  them 
covered  with  small  insects,  and  the  nests 
and  nest  bags  swarming  with  the  same  sort 
of  troublesome  vermin,  which  must  have 
sucked  them  to  death;  the  poor  old  hens 
were  sitting  on  their  eggs  in  their  usual 
position,  suffering  themselves  to  be  worried 
to  death  rather  than  quit  their  charge.  We 
do  not,  however,  generally  find  them  in- 
clined to  put  up  with  such  repeated  tor- 
ments; and  they  are  therefore  necessitated 
to  forsake  their  eggs  or  young. 

The  birds,  sometimes,  after  breeding  pro- 
perly, will,  without  any  apparent  cause, 
coolly  fill  up  the  nest,  generally  with  some 
white  stuff,  and  quietly  forsake  it.  This  is 
usually  when  they  have  been  disturbed  by 
strangers,  or  when  the  eggs  are  addled. 


50  CANARY  BIRDS. 

The  latter  is  sometimes  caused  by  thunder 
or  other  loud  noise.  In  such  case,  remove 
the  nest,  and  give  facilities  for  making  a 
fresh  start ;  also  change  the  situation  of  the 
cage.  When  it  would  be  troublesome  to  re- 
move the  nest,  it  may  remain  ;  but  deserted 
nests  are  bad  nooks  for  insects,  and  a  bird 
is  all  the  better  for  not  being  reminded  of 
its  former  failure.  A  real  good  bird  for  sit- 
ting and  bringing  up  her  young  is  a  great 
acquisition,  and  should  have  every  advan- 
tage ;  if  she  is  an  inferior  bird,  otherways, 
first-rate  eggs  can  be  substituted  for  her  own. 
Some  mischievous  birds  will  break  and 
suck  their  eggs  as  soon  as  they  are  laid ;  to 
prevent  this,  supply  them  with  plenty  of 
food  every  night,  that  the  birds  may  feed 
early  in  the  morning :  if  this  does  not  suc- 
ceed, put  a  little  mustard,  or  bitter  aloes  dis- 
solved, inside  a  bad  egg ;  when  they  begin 
to  peck  it,  the  bad  taste  may  prevent  a  re- 
petition, and  in  all  probability  induce  them 
to  rear  instead  of  destroying  their  progeny. 


CANAR  Y  BIRDS.  51 

As  is  the  case  with  most  birds,  the  female 
is  generally  the  builder,  while  the  male  only 
chooses  the  place  for  the  nest,  and  carries 
the  materials.  One  egg  is  laid  each  day — • 
generally  at  the  same  hour — till  they  reach 
five  or  six  in  number.  If  the  birds  be  good 
sitters,  it  is  sufficient  to  leave  them  to  them- 
selves, as  they  do  not  approve  of  any  inter- 
ference, and  the  less  they  undergo  the  better 
they  will  succeed.  It  is,  however,  usual  to 
take  the  eggs  away  as  soon  as  laid,  supply- 
ing their  place  in  the  nest  with  an  ivory  or 
china  nest-egg,  and  laying  them  up  in  a  box, 
the  small  end  downwards,  in  fine,  dry  river 
sand.  When  the  hen  has  ceased  to  lay,  the 
eggs  are  put  back  into  the  nest  to  be  hatched. 
She  lays  three  or  four  times  a  year, 
from  April  to  September ;  the  eggs  are  sea- 
green  in  color,  more  or  less  spotted, 
and  streaked  with  reddish  brown  and 
violet. 

The  period  of  incubation  is  thirteen  days. 
The  male  relieves  the  female  at  the  labor  of 


52  CANARY  BIRDS. 

incubation  during  a  few  hours  in  every  day ; 
though  the  latter  flies  back  as  soon  as  her 
hunger  is  satisfied,  and  if  the  male  refuses 
to  give  up  his  place,  drives  him  from  it  with 
beak  and  claws.  She  is  probably  aware 
that  he  will  perform  his  office  imperfectly ; 
will  not  turn  the  eggs  sufficiently  often,  or 
will  allow  them  to  become  too  hot  or  too 
cold.  The  life  of  the  young  bird,  even  in 
the  shell,  is  very  precarious ;  and  it  is 
often  killed  by  the  discharge  of  a  gun,  the 
slamming  of  a  door,  or  any  other  loud  or 
sudden  noise. 

"We  dislike  the  practice  of  hanging  cages, 
as  people  often  do,  by  the  side  of  a  window, 
to  be  out  of  a  strong  light.  The  nest  itself 
should  be  in  a  shady  corner,  and  either  a 
spray  of  leaves,  or  a  piece  of  green  baize, 
may  be  hung  over  the  spot  where  it  is  .being 
built ;  but  of  all  depressing  things  to  the  old 
birds,  and  of  all  hurtful  and  weakening 
things  for  the  young,  the  absence  of  direct 
light  and  of  the  warm  soft  rays  of  the  morn- 


CANARY  BIRDS.  53 

ing  sun,  are  the  worst  to  which  they  can  be 
exposed.  Some  young  birds,  in  fact,  leave 
their  nests  less  than  half  fledged  from  this 
very  cause,  as  nothing  adds  so  much  to  the 
quick  growth  of  the  feathers,  as  the  warm 
(not  scorching)  sunshine,  such  as  flickers 
down  through  the  leaves  of  some  waving 
shrub ;  and  the  fresh  air  and  moisture  of  the 
summer  dew  help  the  nestlings  both  in  their 
growth  and  feathering. 

If  the  hen  should  have  fits  while  sitting, 
as  is  very  likely  in  cold  weather,  it  is  best  to 
put  her  very  gently  in  a  warm  bath,  laying 
her  afterwards  on  a  piece  of  heated  flannel. 
The  greatest  care  is  necessary,  however,  not 
to  hurt  the  bird  while  holding  it  in  the  hands. 

While  birds  are  sitting,  the  supply  of 
food  should  always  be  very  abundant. 
Where  hard  boiled  egg  is  given,  powder 
it  fine  and  mix  with  grated  stale  bread. 
Only  a  small  quantity  should  be  given  at  a 
time,  and  it  should  never  be  left  to  get  sour 

in  the  cage.   Well  baked  stale  bread  answers 

5* 


54  CANARY  BIRDS. 

very  well  mixed  with  pounded  hemp-seed, 
some  say  pounded  rape-seed,  and  Mr.  Kidd 
recommends  bread  and  milk ;  just  enough 
cold  milk  should  be  poured  on  grated  bread 
to  moisten  it.  The  day  before  the  young 
are  expected  to  be  hatched,  and  afterwards, 
some  grated  bread,  soaked  in  water  and 
pressed  dry,  and  a  finely  chopped  up  hard 
boiled  egg,  should  be  put  into  the  cage  in  a 
saucer.  This  should  always  be  given  in  the 
evening,  an  hour  before  the  birds'  usual 
roosting- time,  and  again  in  the  morning  as 
early  as  it  can  be  conveniently  done  ;  eight 
or  nine  o'clock  will  do,  but  then  the  even- 
ing supply  must  never  be  omitted,  that  it 
may  be  ready  for  the  early  hours  of  small 
birds  who  often  die  for  want  of  an  early 
breakfast.  For  bread  some  persons  substi- 
tute biscuit.  A  second  saucer  should  con- 
tain rape-seed,  which  two  hours  before, 
has  been  boiled,  and  afterwards  washed  in 
cold  water,  to  take  away  its  pungency.  The 
main  thing  to  be  attended  to,  is,  that  no  food 


CANARY  BIRDS.  55 

intended  for  young  canaries  should  stand 
until  it  becomes  sour,  as  sour  food  is  as  inju- 
rious to  them  as  to  young  infants. 

The  chief  occupation  of  the  male  now,  for 
some  time,  consists  in  supplying  the  young 
with  food,  which  he  takes  almost  wholly 
upon  himself,  probably  with  a  view  of  allow- 
ing the  female  to  rest  after  her  fatigue. 

If,  in  consequence  of  any  accident,  it 
should  be  necessary  to  feed  the  young  birds 
by  hand,  the  best  food  is  wheaten  bread,  or 
biscuit  grated  fine,  mixed  with  rape-seed 
crushed  small.  A  little  of  this  food,  moist- 
ened with  yelk  of  egg  and  water,  should  be 
given  to  each  bird,  by  means  of  a  quill,  ten 
or  twelve  times  a  day.  About  four  quill- 
fuls  will  be  found  sufficient  for  a  meal.  A 
lady  says,  "  four  living  nestlings  are  a  com- 
mon thing  with  us,  but  then  we  are  not  too 
helpful  to  the  parent  birds,  but  let  them 
alone.  Once  the  hen  died,  and  the  male 
seemed  perplexed  as  to  how  he  was  to  act 
nurse,  so  we  undertook  to  help  him,  and  by 


56  CANARY  BIRDS. 

feeding  endlessly  from  early  morning  to 
quite  evening,  we  contrived  to  rear  a  tame 
and  pretty  set  of  little  downy  birds." 

Look  at  the  nest  of  young  birds  twice  a 
week,  to  see  if  all  is  going  on  right ;  if  they 
appear  red,  with  their  crops  full  of  victuals, 
you  may  be  assured  they  are  doing  well ; 
in  case,  however,  you  find  them  of  a  sickly 
pale  hue,  without  any  food  in  their  neck  or 
crops,  most  likely  the  nest  and  birds  are  in- 
fested with  vermin.  Change  their  nest  box 
and  nest  for  a  new  one  immediately,  made 
warm  with  a  hot  egg  rolled  in  it,  which 
should  be  done  as  expeditiously  as  possible ; 
for  many  hens  are  of  a  very  fretful  disposi- 
tion, and  will  not  sanction  any  interruption 
to  their  maternal  care,  often  forsaking  their 
young  by  too  much  familiarity.  When  this 
happens  to  be  the  case,  feed  the  young  occa- 
sionally with  a  small  bit  of  the  yelk  of  hard 
egg,  dissolved  by  one  or  two  drops  of  clean 
water ;  add  to  this  a  little  sopped  bun  or 
eponge-cake,  forming  it  into  a  thinnish  paste, 


CANARY  BIRDS.  57 

and  with  the  point  of  a  wooden  skewer  feed 
them  every  hour,  to  keep  up  their  strength. 
If  the  old  hen  or  cock  should  feed  them, 
you  need  not.  Oftentimes  the  cock  will 
bring  them  up,  although  the  hen  may  have 
forsaken  her  little  ones;  do  not,  therefore, 
keep  them  out  of  the  breeding-cage,  but 
give  the  cock  every  opportunity  to  supply 
them  with  food  from  his  fostering  mouth. 
In  case  he  does  not  do  it,  they  may  be  taken 
entirely  away,  and  brought  up  by  hand ; 
keeping  their  nest  covered  with  flannel  to 
prevent  cold. 

Sometimes,  when  the  eggs  are  irregularly 
hatched,  particularly  under  a  young  mother, 
she  feels  so  anxious  for  the  eggs  not  hatched, 
as  to  refuse  to  leave  her  nest  to  feed  the 
young  ones  that  have  already  come  to  life ; 
and  thus  the  poor  birds  get  starved.  To 
prevent  this,  take  care  everything  enticing 
in  food,  as  egg  and  crumbs,  fresh  greens, 
etc.,  is  provided  and  given  over  night.  Then 
watch,  to  see  if  the  hen  feed,  or  the  cock 


58  CANARY  BIRDS. 

carry  food  to  her;  if  neither  be  the  case, 
you  must  put  the  hen  off  her  nest,  and  if 
she  sees  plenty  of  food,  she  will  eat ;  and 
the  hen,  thus  induced  to  take  food,  will, 
when  she  sees  the  young  ones  gaping  for 
food,  feed  them,  which  will  induce  the  cock 
to  assist  her  in  this  duty  ;  for  when  once  the 
cock  sees  the  hen  feed  the  little  ones,  he  will 
follow  the  example. 

The  pious  and  excellent  Dr.  Watts  has 
borne  testimony  to  the  harmony  of  the  early 
condition  of  these  birds  : 

"  Birds  in  their  little  nests  agree." 

But  it  is  well  the  worthy  Doctor  stopped 
here ;  for  no  sooner  have  the  young  of  the 
canary  scrambled  from  their  cradle,  than 
they  fight  like  young  harpies. 

Up  to  the  twelfth  day  the  young  are 
almost  destitute  of  feathers,  and  need  the 
warmth  of  their  mother's  wing;  and  it  is 
sometimes  the  case,  especially  in  cold,  dry 
seasons,  that  they  never  become  properly 


CANARY  BIRDS.  59 

fledged.  The  growth,  of  the  feathers  is 
sometimes  promoted  by  a  bath  of  lukewarm 
water. 

After  the  thirtieth  day,  they  are  able  to 
feed  themselves,  and  begin  to  twitter,  and 
when  a  month  old,  may  be  taken  from  the 
parent  birds  and  confined  in  separate  cages, 
which  it  is  advisable  to  hang  at  some  dis- 
tance from  one  another. 

The  sooner  the  little  birds  will  wash,  the 
better  for  them,  and  their  cage  should  never 
be  without  green  food — chickweed  or  water- 
cresses.  A  hard-boiled  egg,  white  and  yelk 
finely  chopped,  is  useful  for  these  little 
things.  It  must  be  constantly  fresh. 

A  rather  novel  and  exceedingly  useful 
remedy  is  a  little  strongish  tea,  when  the 
birds  seem  sickly.  If  left  in  their  cage  with 
fresh  water  also,  they  can  take  it  or  not,  as 
their  instinct  leads  them,  and  when  they  are 
weakly,  or  liable  to  cold,  it  often  is  good  for 
them. 

The  more  soft  sunshine  they  can  have,  the 


60  CANARY  BIRDS. 

better ;  but  do  not  leave  them  to  be  almost 
baked  in  a  hot  sun.  There  should  always 
be  a  shaded  place  in  the  cage ;  not  a  dark 
cloth  over  it,  but  a  branch  or  two  of  some 
tree,  making  a  trembling  shadow.  They 
thrive  best  with  the  food  of  wild  birds,  such 
as  thistle-seed,  plantain,  chickweed,  and  per- 
haps more  important  than  all,  some  insects  ; 
ants'  eggs  are  good,  and  are  found  in  their 
hills ;  but  aphides  and  most  insects  are  wel- 
come. I  doubt  if  young  birds  can  eat  too 
much.  The  chief  danger  is  their  not  getting 
enough  food. 

The  little  birds  moult  at  a  very  early  age, 
almost  before  they  can  fly.  Extra  warmth, 
extra  food,  and  extra  quiet  are  at  this  time 
necessary.  If  they  survive  September,  >  it 
may  fairly  be  hoped  they  will  do  well. 

"  Wonderfully  tame  these  little  pets  grow. 
I  have  one  who  follows  my  hand  about  the 
side  of  a  large  cage,  just  like  a  little  dog, 
nestling  up  against  it,  and  putting  its  little 
claw  out  through  the  wires  to  take  hold  of 


CANARY  BIRDS. 


61 


my  fingers ;  and  as  to  Bully  and  Bobby,  it 
is  laughable  to  see  how  they  sidle  and  bow, 
and  fluff  out  their  fine  plumes,  and  go  edg- 
ing along  as  long  as  any  one  will  talk  to 
them.  One  of  the  prettiest  sights  is  a  little 
bird  requesting  to  be  fed  ;  it  looks  so  pretty, 
fluttering  its  wings  and  putting  up  its  head." 
Crack  a  hempseed  and  present  it  on  the  end 
of  a  finger,  and  the  entreaty  of  the  little  fel- 
low for  "  more  "  reminds  us  of  Oliver  Twist. 
When  the  young  are  from  twelve  to  four- 
teen days  old,  the  hen  begins  to  prepare  for 
a  second  brood,  builds  a  new  nest,  and  has 
often  laid  her  eggs  before  the  former  brood 
are  fully  fledged ;  the  male  taking  care  of 
the  first  brood.  When  a  male  has  been 
paired,  in  the  manner  before  mentioned,  with 
two  females,  one  of  which  dies  before  her 
eggs  are  hatched,  the  other  will  receive  them 
into  her  nest,  sit  on  them  till  they  are 
hatched,  and  treat  the  young  birds  with  as 
much  attention  as  her  own,  proving  a  good 
step-mother. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

TO  TEACH  YOUNG  BIRDS  TO  SING. 

Gjl  t  a  fortnight  old,  the  male  may  be  dis- 
C7  tinguished  from  the  female  by  the  more 
connected  character  of  his  song.  If  a  young 
bird  is  to  be  taught  to  whistle,  it  should 
now  be  separated  from  its  comrades  and 
confined  in  a  small  wire  cage,  which  should 
be  covered,  at  first,  with  a  linen  cloth,  and 
afterwards  with  some  thicker  material.  A 
short  air  should  then  be  whistled,  or  played 
on  a  flute  or  bird-organ,  within  his  hearing 
five  or  six  times  a  day,  and  repeated  on 
each  occasion  half  a  dozen  times.  "  My  idea 
is  to  play  to  them  while  they  are  at  their 
breakfast,  and  after  they  have  done  eating — 
they  are  always  then  much  more  disposed 
to  listen.  After  the  bath,  again,  there  is  a 
grand  twittering  time,  while  they  are  plum- 


• 


CANARY  BIRDS.  63 


ing  themselves,  and  at  bedtime,  when  there 
is  always  an  amazing  fuss ;  though  I  doubt 
whether  playing  to  them  then  would  do  any 
good." 

The  earlier  the  birds  are  taken  from  the 
nest,  the  freer  their  song  will  be  from  notes 
that  are  not  wanted.  The  German  trainers 
blow  on  the  bird's  feathers,  and  look  cross 
and  scold  it  when  it  sings  a  wrong  note, 
rewarding  with  hempseed,  or  some  such 
dainty,  when  it  performs  successfully.  It 
takes  several  months  to  learn  a  tune  per- 
fectly. As  a  general  rule,  those  tunes  which 
have  a  sort  of  running  scale  will  be  found 
the  easiest  to  learn.  It  is  a  fact,  that  the 
song  of  birds  is  not,  strictly  speaking,  natu- 
ral, but  acquired  at  the  very  earliest  age, 
from  the  notes  of  the  parent  singing  near 
the  nest ;  just  as  the  child  of  an  American 
is  taught  by  his  parents,  and  would  know 
nothing  of  his  father's  native  tongue  if  he 
heard  only  the  French  language  spoken. 
The  knowledge  of  this  fact  should  be  a  great 


64  CANARY  BIRDS. 

assistance  in  teaching  birds  to  sing  artificial 
songs.  A  bird,  accustomed  to  hearing  the 
mewing  of  a  cat,  forgot  his  own  melodies 
and  mewed  also.  He  was  cured  by  being 
taken  to  a  neighbor's,  and  his  cage  hung 
near  another  bird  who  was  a  sweet  songster. 
The  very  general  introduction  into  an  ac- 
quired tune  of  a  few  of  the  bird's  own  notes, 
is  owing  to  its  having  been  taken  into  train- 
ing too  far  on  in  its  life  ;  even  at  four  or  five 
days  old,  when  the  nestlings  cannot  see,  it 
appears  they  can  remember  the  sound  of  the 
parent's  voice  ;  probably  they  listen  to  that 
alone,  as  at  that  early  age  they  do  not  catch 
the  notes  of  other  birds,  though  many  may 
be  chirping  around  them. 

In  teaching  young  birds  to  sing,  school 
cages  are  useful ;  either  a  row  of  the  little 
six-inch  square  cages,  or  else  a  long  narrow 
box,  wired  in  front,  and  divided  into  com- 
partments. One  really  good  singing  bird 
may  be  hung  overhead,  and  will  teach  them 
all.  They  will  learn  whatever  it  is  they 


CANARY  BIRDS.  (55 

may  hear,  and  so  we  had  better  provide 
them  with  a  good  instructor.  It  is  only  in 
rare  cases  that  a  bird  will  sing  while  moult- 
ing, and  after  the  first  and  second  moulting 
season  the  bird  is  obliged  to  re-learn  its 
song,  and  thus  learns  to  intermix  the  notes 
of  other  birds.  Instances  have  been  known 
in  which  canaries  have  been  taught  to  repeat 
short  words  distinctly,  to  distinguish  names, 
colors,  letters,  and  numbers,  and  to  perform 
certain  actions  at  the  word  of  command.  A 
female,  in  the  possession  of  a  person  named 
Jeantot,  selected  from  an  alphabet,  and 
placed  in  order,  the  letters  of  certain  words ; 
added,  subtracted,  and  multiplied  in  Ger- 
man, and  indicated,  by  means  of  numbers, 
the  exact  time  of  a  watch.  He  had  also 
three  males  with  him,  which  were  able  to 
select  letters  and  numbers  which  were 
named.  Hunger  had  been  the  chief  means 
used  in  the  education  of  all;  a  species  of  cru- 
elty without  any  excuse,  and  which  should 
be  wholly  condemned. 


66  CANARY  BIRDS. 

Many  birds  are  so  self-willed  as  never  to 
sing  except  they  can  display  their  vocal 
powers  alone,  while  the  song  of  others  is 
always  soft  and  low,  except  when  excited  to 
rivalry  by  hearing  the  performance  of  a 
neighbor.  It  is  important  to  give  them  their 
allotted  portion  of  food  every  day ;  for  if 
too  large  a  supply  is  given  them  at  once, 
the  result  is  that  they  pick  out  the  best  first, 
and  leave  the  rest  for  another  day,  which 
impairs  their  vocal  powers. 

A  bird  of  two  or  three  years  old  was 
taught  to  sing  a  national  air  very  sweetly 
by  some  children  who  had  a  little  bird- 
organ,  and  they  played  the  tune  on  every 
occasion  possible. 


CANARY  BIRDS.  67 


CHAPTER  VII. 

AVIARY  BIRDS  AND  CAGES. 

31.  JttaltttjJ  gives  useful  information 
in  relation  to  aviaries,  but  mostly 
adapted  to  English  birds  and  English  cli- 
mate. "  The  most  enjoyable  arrangement 
that  I  ever  knew  for  the  cage  bird  building, 
was  a  plan  adopted  for  my  birds  when  I  was 
a  child.  We  had  at  that  time  a  good  many 
birds  kept  in  different  ways  ;  some  loose  in 
a  room,  some  in  single  cages,  and  others  in 
one  large  cage,  standing  about  six  feet  high, 
which  was  divided  into  separate  apartments, 
and  provided  with  gratings  to  shut  off  young 
broods.  The  top  had  a  sloping  roof  to  shed 
rain,  and  a  water-proof  curtain  was  hung  at 
night  before  the  wire  front. 

"  This  cage  used  every  spring  to  be  car- 
ried out  into  the  garden,  when  the  green- 


68  CANARY  BIRDS. 

house  plants  went,  and  there  it  stood  under 
a  beautiful  scarlet  Thorn,  till  the  first  cold 
days  of  autumn  warned  us  to  take  it  back 
to  its  winter  quarters  in  the  hall,  near  enough 
to  the  fire  to  be  kept  pretty  warm." 

In  a  cage  of  this  size,  if  birds  of  only  one 
or  two  kinds  are  kept,  there  may  be  as 
many  as  ten  or  a  dozen  pairs.  We  generally 
had  a  few  linnets  and  goldfinches,  and  all 
the  rest  canaries  ;  and  all  these  used  to  pair 
a  good  deal,  canaries  with  goldfinches,  and 
so  on. 

The  two  sides  being  separated  by  a  wire 
grating,  the  young  birds  were  often  kept  in 
one  division,  with,  perhaps,  a  party  of  a  dif- 
ferent kind  overhead,  their  own  parents  still 
being  kind  to  them  through  the  dividing 
bars. 

In  the  winter,  the  partitions  being  opened, 
the  whole  number,  sixteen  or  twenty,  would 
live  together  happily. 

One  very  good  plan  to  adopt  in  having 
this  kind  of  cage,  is  to  have  one  half  made 


CANARY  BIRDS.  69 

permanently  separated  by  a  wire  division 
from  the  other,  while  that  other  is  so  ar- 
ranged, by  means  of  brackets,  serving  for 
perches  when  not  in  use,  as  to  support  the 
floor  of  an  upper  story  not  more  than  a 
foot  from  the  top,  or  at  different  heights 
going  up. 

The  advantage  of  this  plan  is,  that  the 
two  sides  can  contain  couples  which  would 
be  disposed  to  molest  each  other  in  their 
building,  while  the  small  division  up-stairs, 
when  the  cage  is  in  three  compartments, 
forms  a  roomy  nursery  for  any  broods  of 
young  birds  that  may  require  a  little  feeding 
after  they  have  left  their  mother.  If  a  perch 
or  branch  is  placed  near  the  wires,  the  old 
bird  will  very  often  patronize  his  children, 
and  example  is  of  great  service  in  teaching 
them  to  wash  and  make  themselves  look 
respectable. 

This  is  of  such  consequence,  that  when 
my  young  birds  (bought  when  just  fledged) 
do  not  do  well  in  this  way,  I  put  a  very 


70  CANARY  BIRDS. 

dandy  bird,  either  Chaffie  or  Goldie,  in  the 
adjoining  part,  that  by  seeing  him  they  may 
be  fairly  shamed  by  the  elaborateness  of  his 
toilette. 

Many  people  divide  lengthways  an  aviary 
like  this  ;  some,  again,  contrive  a  third  story 
in  winter,  at  least,  by  removing  the  front 
slope  of  the  roof  and  substituting  wire.  The 
top  should,  however,  have  a  ceiling  when 
out  of  doors,  for  protection  from  heat  and 
damp  in  the  summer  time,  and  from  cold  in 
winter. 

I  myself  prefer  very  much  the  high  divi- 
sions, as  the  birds  seem  fond  of  hopping  up 
and  down ;  they  admit  also  a  much  nicer 
tree,  and  show  the  inmates  off  to  greater 
advantage. 

No  paint,  I  need  hardly  say,  should  be 
used  inside,  and  no  brass  whatever. 

'  If  glass  is  adopted,  the  maker  must  be 
particularly  warned  to  put  the  putty  entirely 
outside. 

I  do  not  think  any  wood  really  answers 


CANARY  BIRDS.  71 

better  than  well  smoothed  and  polished  deal ; 
but  many  persons  dislike  it,  and  it  is  merely 
a  fancy,  perhaps,  of  my  own,  though  having 
seen  how  well  it  has  answered,  I  have  now 
a  preference  for  it.  Mahogany  is  particu- 
larly unsuitable  to  display  the  birds'  bright 
plumage. 

I  am  much  in  favor  of  a  double  set  of 
food-holders,  changing  them  each  day,  so  as 
to  insure  a  good  washing,  drying,  and  air- 
ing. The  boxes  should  be  so  arranged  as 
to  be  easily  got  at  by  doors,  as  the  water 
should  be  changed  twice  a  day  in  summer, 
and  the  seed  daily.  A  mixture  of  old  lime, 
red  sand,  and  chalk  is  useful  in  keeping 
birds  in  health. 

I  will  give  the  exact  working  description 
of  an  aviary  cage  I  have  lately  had  made 
by  the  pattern,  in  great  measure,  of  that 
before  alluded  to.  Woodwork  entirely,  of 
well  seasoned  deal.  Dimensions:  height, 
from  floor  to  top,  four  feet,  i.  e.  from  floor  to 
spring  of  slope,  three  feet,  and  one  foot 


72  CANARY  BIRDS. 

allowed  for  the  slope  of  the  roof.  Width, 
two  feet ;  length,  four  feet.  The  top  slopes 
down  from  a  shelf  six  inches  wide,  which  is 
at  the  back.  The  whole  front,  back,  sides, 
and  top,  are  of  wire.  The  bottom  has  a 
drawer  made  in  two  parts  to  draw  out,  and 
a  wire  partition  runs  up  the  cage,  and  is  un- 
hooked at  pleasure.  A  green  baize  curtain 
can  be  drawn  round  the  cage,  and  a  floor 
(a  tray  itself)  can  be  put  in  to  divide  each 
side  into  two  stories — making  four  in  all. 
The  doors  are  all  at  the  ends,  which  also 
open  entirely.  The  ?eed  vessels  are  all  co- 
vered, and  have  drawers  lined  with  glass 
for  containing  seed  and  water.  They  stand 
in  the  cage,  and  have  small  perches  fastened 
to  them,  which  lo*>k:  very  pretty  when 
crowded  with  birds.  The  great  charm  of 
this  cage  is,  that,  standing  in  a  window,  the 
birds  have  full  air  and  light,  while  perfectly 
visible  within  and  without.  When  nicely 
arranged,  fronted  with  a  few  plants  and 
creepers,  and  with  a  bath,  etc.,  it  is  extreme- 


CANARY  SIEDS.  73 

ly  pretty,  and  the  bird's  bright  plumage 
makes  it  look  almost  as  gay  as  flowers,  even 
in  the  gloomier  time  of  year  when  only 
evergreens  can  make  up  "  a  wood." 

There  is  always  a  doubt  as  to  the  agree- 
ment of  many  birds  together ;  but  it  must 
be  remembered  that  two  birds  alone  in  a 
cage  will  fight,  if  it  so  pleases  them,  just 
like  cat  and  dog ;  while  in  an  aviary,  or 
large  cage,  the  space  for  flight  and  for  dodg- 
ing is  far  greater  if  they  do  fight,  and  it  is 
very  rare  that  more  than  a  single  bird  at 
once  will  attack  another.  When  a  whole 
cage-full  do  set  themselves  against  one  indi- 
vidual, the  only  thing  for  him  is  to  give  him 
another  home.  But  a  great  deal  depends 
on  careful  management ;  letting  the  birds 
get  well  acquainted,  at  least  by  sight  and 
hearing,  before  they  actually  share  the  same 
cage,  letting  them  loose  together,  above  all 
when  they  are  not  hungry,  and  consequently 
cross. 

Our  birds  throve  well  with  their  nurseries 
7 


74:  CANARY  BIRDS. 

out  of  doors.  They  had  the  early  sunlight, 
&he  sweet  morning  air,  the  dew,  and  the 
^cheerfulness  of  everything  around,  all  keep- 
ing them  well  and  happy,  till,  indeed,  I 
should  now  be  quite  afraid  to  say  how  many 
young  birds,  year  by  year,  used  to  grow  up 
with  us. 

When  there  was  a  young  family  old 
enough  to  leave  the  maternal  wing,  a  small 
cage  would  be  provided,  or  a  division  of  the 
aviary  prepared  for  them.  In  whichever 
they  were  placed,  we  took  care  they  should 
have  plenty  of  little  round  holes  (like  those 
miserable  holes  for  getting  at  seed  and  wa- 
ter), which  they  could  be  fed  through  if 
their  parents  pleased.  We  used  always  to 
strew  a  good  deal  of  crushed  hemp,  and 
maw  seed,  and  crumbs  of  stale  bread,  upon 
the  i  floor  of  the  cage,  as  soon  as  the  young 
ones  began  to  leave  their  nest  and  to  hop 
about,  so  that  afterwards,  the  same  plan  being 
continued  in  their  own  new  cage,  half  the  dif- 
ficulty of  teaching  them  to  eat  was  obviated. 


CANARY  BIRDS.  75 

It  is  a  good  thing  to  accustom  young  birds 
to  be  very  clean  :  baths  in  fine  weather  are 
not  likely  to  be  hurtful ;  but  if  they  do  not 
wash,  a  little  sprinkling  from  a  fine  brush  is 
sometimes  desirable  to  force  them  to  preen 
their  feathers.  To  be  in  a  cage  in  view  of 
the  old  birds  is  often  helpful  here,  and  at 
any  time  I  would  gladly  give  up  one  hatch 
of  birds  for  the  sake  of  the  pleasure  it  is  to 
see  the  little  fledglings  getting  their  educa- 
tion— the  parental  scoldings,  pecks,  and 
pokes,  which  are  so  amusing, 

Unless  a  set  of  birds  are  already  on  a  very 
familiar  footing  with  their  mistress  and  ex- 
tremely tame,  it  does  not  do  to  seem  to 
watch  them  much.  At  the  same  time  when 
a  young  pair  bred  up  from  nestlings,  or  long 
become  tame,  have  begun  to  build,  they 
will  often  go  on  composedly,  and  allow  of 
almost  any  amount  of  friendly  interfer- 
ence. 

I  suspected  the  other  day  that  one  of  mine 
bad  been  building  a  floorless  nest,  and  put  a 


76  CANAET  BIRDS. 

finger  into  the  nest  to  see :  both  birds  came 
immediately,  and,  standing  at  the  door  to 
watch  me,  gave  no  sign  of  fear  or  of  displea- 
sure, but  simply  wished  to  know  what  I 
could  be  at.  A  very  soft,  well-felted  lining, 
after  all,  I  found,  and  directly  I  removed 
my  finger,  into  her  nest  popped  the  little 
bird,  and  there  she  sat  amidst  her  fir  branch- 
es, with  her  little  black  eyes  glittering  as  I 
hardly  thought  a  bird's  eyes  would  'glitter  • 
she  also  took  crumbs  of  biscuits  or  of  hemp- 
seed  when  I  held  them  to  her,  with  evident 
satisfaction. 

I  have  no  faith  at  all  in  match-making ; 
in  nine  cases  out  of  ten  it  is  quite  certain 
that  the  birds  suit  themselves  better  than 
we  could  suit  them.  Besides,  half  the  amuse- 
ment is  seeing  what  they  will  do.  The  pret- 
tiest nest  I  have  had  this  year  was  the  pro- 
duction of  a  strong-minded  female,  who  fair- 
ly hunted  down  a  poor  little  German  bird 
not  more  than  half  her  size.  Never  was 
anything  more  amusing  than  Jenny's  perti- 


CANARY  BIRDS.  77 

nacity ;  first  she  drove  away  all  the  other 
birds,  daring  them  to  come  near  her,  and 
then  she  fairly  flattered  little  timid  Tuft  into 
becoming  her  most  submissive  spouse.  She 
treated  him  well,  however,  and  fought  his 
battles  for  him. 

It  does  not  answer  when  they  begin  to  sit 
very  late,  because  then  the  second  or  third 
brood  is  apt  to  be  made  too  backward. 
About  six  weeks  generally  elapse  from  the 
time  of  the  first  sitting  till  the  next  begins. 
And  it  is  very  common  to  have  four  or  five 
broods  of  canaries  in  a  season.  The  wild 
birds  in  Madeira  begin  to  build  in  February, 
and  hatch  quite  as  often.  The  canary  often 
begins  sitting  from  the  day  on  which  her 
first  egg  is  laid,  thus  beginning  to  hatch  in 
thirteen  days  after.  Some  people  "take- 
care  "  of  the  eggs  for  the  .unhappy  birds  ;• 
but  I  am  sure  that  the  rule  of  letting  things- 
alone  answers  much  the  best  here,  and  the- 
deserted  nests  and  the  uncared-for  young" 

are  rot  uwiaJ  in  tho  woods  nnd  fields — they 
<* 


78  CANARY  BIRDS. 

are  events  reserved  for  places  where  "  every 
possible  pains  is  taken." 

Of  aH  the  knotty  points  in  the  keeping 
birds,  the  knottiest  and  the  most  trouble- 
some is  to  know  which  will  live  together. 

My  own  belief  is  that  much  more  depends 
on  the  way  of  treatment  than  on  the  birds 
themselves.  Of  course,  if  a  wild  bird  is  put 
into  a  cage  full  of  tame  and  gentle  ones,  it 
is  much  like  a  young  gorilla  set  loose  in  a 
peaceful  family  ;  the  mischief,  the  spite,  the 
tricks,  are  something  inconceivable, — every 
bird  gets  cross, — and  the  mistress  is  in  de- 
spair. Civilized  birds  do  not  behave  in  this 
way,  and  it  should  be  an  unalterable  law 
never  to  put  a  bird  into  an  aviary,  or  large 
.cage  full  of  others,  till  it  has  been  kept  some 
days,  and  has  got  used  to  the  place.  Birds 
:are  upset  and  bewildered  by  any  change,  as 
imuch  or  more  than  human  beings  ;  and  the 
•catching  to  put  them  in  a  travelling  cage, 
:and  the  journey, — being  carried,  perhaps, 
ithrough  some  noisy  streets, — is  a  disturbing 


CANARY  BIRDS.  79 

business ;  and  then,  again,  in  the  change  of 
cages,  very  often,  indeed,  new  birds  do  not 
know  where  to  look  for  the  food  and  water. 
Having  once  given  the  new-comers  time  to 
get  perfectly  at  home  with  the  room  and 
their  owner,  and  used  to  the  faces  and  voices 
of  those  going  in  and  out,  the  actual  putting 
into  the  aviary  is  generally  a  very  quiet 
work  ;  when  in  a  single  cage,  too,  they  have 
wanted  so  much  to  be  promoted  to  it ! 

At  this  moment  I  have  before  me,  living 
for  a  time  in  a  large  store  cage  three  feet  six 
inches  by  eighteen  inches  deep,  a  company 
of  twenty  birds.  The  cage  at  night  stands 
in  a  passage,  and  is  covered  well  over  with 
a  woollen  table-cloth.  In  the  day  it  stands 
in  a  window  of  my  sitting-room  on  the  top 
of  a  plant  case.  A  bath,  glazed  at  the  top 
and  three  sides,  is  hooked  upon  the  door,  the 
amusement  of  which  is  indescribable.  Birds 
emerge  at  intervals  in  parties  of  two  or 
three,  and  go  afterwards  to  "  hang  them- 
selves out  to  dry  "  on  t^e  sunniest  perch  or 


80  CANARY  BIEDS. 

in  the  swing,  looking  most  woebegone.  I 
have  seen  two  of  these  half- drowned  crea- 
tures hanging  out  in  the  swing  together. 
The  toilette  that  concludes  the  business  is 
very  elaborate,  and  it  is  most  amusing  to 
see  the  little  things,  who  want  to  have  credit 
for  washing,  but  do  not  like  the  cold ;  how 
they  put  in  one  leg  and  pull  it  out  again, 
and  finally  perch  just  upon  the  edge  while 
somebody  else  is  washing,  to  catch  the 
shower  sent  up  so  vigorously.  And  then 
the  little  cheat  shakes  itself  out,  makes  an 
immense  to-do,  and  sometimes  drives  down 
a  really  washed  bird  from  a  sunny  corner 
that  it  may  dry  itself. 

It  is  not  uncommon  in  England  to  have 
quite  a  variety  of  birds  in  an  aviary ;  such 
as  chaffinches,  bullfinches,  linnets,  siskins, 
and  goldfinches;  but  canaries  seem  to  be 
the  only  legitimate  builders  in  an  aviary. 
The  admixture  of  a  number  of  other  tribes 
(for  breeding  purposes)  is  evidently  a  mis- 
take. At  least  so  Mr.  Kidd,  who  has  had 


CANARY  BIRDS.  81 

large  experience,  thinks.  He  says :  "  A 
little  calm  reflection  will  show  good  reason 
for  this ;  seeing  how  very  dissimilar  are  the 
tastes  and  habits  of  some  birds  compared 
with  others — these  courting  retirenren-t,  and 
feeling  annoyed  when  disturbed;  those  re- 
joicing in  mischief,  and  never  so  happy  as 
when  up  to  their  ears  in  excitement  and 
noise." 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE    ROOM   AVIARY. 

bdktJC  one  of  the  least  troublesome  and 
most  enjoyable  of  aviaries  is  that  fitted 
up  in  a  small  spare  room.  It  is  better  with- 
out paper  on  the  walls ;  but  if  it  is  on,  be 
careful  not  to  have  the  least  bit  loose,  as  the 
birds  will  find  it,  and  tug  at  it  till  they  get 
off  all  they  can.  The  birds  will  peck  a 
merely  plastered  wall,  but  that  will  do  them 
good. 

The  glass  sashes  have  to  be  covered  with 
wire-work,  or  are,  some  say,  much  better 
taken  out  altogether  during  the  summer 
months.  I  do  not  quite  agree  to  that  view 
myself,  as  it  seems  to  me  that  the  means  of 
closing  a  window  is  not  to  be  despised  in 
case  of  heavy  storms ;  and,  putting  aside  the 
birds,  I  have  visions  of  housemaids  in  con- 


CANARY  BIRDS.  83 

fusion  when  "  the  water  has  come  through." 
Besides,  a  permanent  open  window-frame 
does  not  tend  to  warm,  in  spring  and  au- 
tumn, the  adjoining  rooms.  Thus  I  should 
be  much  disposed,  with  all  due  deference  to 
those  who  advocate  the  more  open  p,lan,  to 
advise  that  the  window-sashes  should  be  left 
in  place,  covered  within  with  a  frame  in 
which  wire-work  has  been  fitted,  the  top 
sash  being  let  down  every  day  in  spring 
and  autumn,  and  in  summer  both  day  and 
night.  A  Venetian  blind  outside,  or  be- 
tween the  window  and  the  wire,  is  a  great 
gain,  for  the  windows  can  then  always 
be  closed  directly  if  any  violent  storm 
comes  on. 

I  have  known  birds  often  die  in  numbers 
a  few  days  or  hours  after  a  severe  thunder- 
storm, to  the  glare  and  fear  of  which  the 
poor  frightened  things  had  been  exposed. 
When  any  such  alarming  event  is  going  on, 
I  always  let  in  my  birds  to  my  own  room, 
and  talk  to,  and  pet  them,  which  is  an  evi- 


84:  CANARY  BIRDS. 

dent  consolation,  for  no  one  knows  how 
much  they  get  frightened. 

Having  a  room  like  this  affords  great 
opportunities  of  taming  and  playing  with 
the  birds  :  while  for  those  who  have  a  weak- 
ness for  "keeping  things  in  their  proper 
places,"  a  glass  door  into  the  next  room 
gives  a  pretty  view  of  the  various  antics 
played  while  keeping  the  birds  quite  sepa- 
rate. 

In  such  a  room,  however,  we  must  beware 
of  mice ;  they  utterly  spoil  any  food  they 
touch  for  the  birds  that  have  to  eat  it ;  in- 
deed, I  believe  it  is  even  made  very  inju- 
rious by  them ;  and  as  people  cannot  actually 
keep  both  cats  and  birds — unless  the  cat  is 
a  genius,  like  one  of  ours,  who  knew  that 
the  birds  were  "friends,"  and  let  them  perch 
upon  him,  and  even  peck  his  ears — great 
care  is  needed  to  guard  against  such  inroads. 

For  the  floor  of  the  room  it  is  advisable 
to  have  oil-cloth,  which  can  be  easily  cleaned. 
Keep  the  windows  constantly  open,  closing 


CANARY  BIRDS.  85 

them  only  in  damp  or  cold  weather.  The 
birds  will  get  in  the  habit  of  perching  on  or 
rather  clinging  to  the  kdges  of  the  window 
frames.  To  obviate  this,  which  is  very  ob- 
jectionable, as  it  soils  the  glass,  have  some 
narrow  (say  one  and  a  half  inch)  slips  of 
wood  fastened  to  the  bottom  of  every  pane 
of  glass  in  a  slanting  position.  By  using 
this  precaution  the  birds  will  slide  off,  and 
they  will  soon  find  you  are  "just  one  too 
many  for  them."  It  will  take  birds  some 
little  time  to  get  used  to  each  other's  ways, 
but  time  will  terminate  their  quarrels,  dis- 
agreements, animosities,  and  battles.  War 
will  gradually  cease,  and  peace  be  pro- 
claimed. Never  turn  in  many  at  once ;  let 
two  or  three  in  mysteriously,  early  in  the 
morning.  This  will  prevent  any  unusual 
fluttering,  and  the  "  wonder "  at  seeing  a 
few  new  faces  will  gradually  subside. 

We  must  caution  against  the  sudden  in- 
troduction of  a  lighted  candle  into  or  near 
an  aviary  at  night.  It  has  so  alarming  an 


86  CANARY  BIRDS. 

effect  on  the  inmates,  that  they  will  precipi- 
tate themselves  headlong  from  their  perches 
and  fall  about  the  room  in  an  agony  of  fear. 
"We  have  known  many  legs  and.  wings 
broken  in  this  way,  and  the  sufferers  had  to 
be  put  to  a  premature  death. 

Another  terrible  annoyance  to  birds  of 
an  aviary  are  the  cats,  especially  on  moon- 
light nights.  They  will  prowl  about,  and, 
if  possible,  jump  into  the  windows;  this 
renders  wire-work  on  the  lower  panes  neces- 
sary, if  there  is  any  way  for  the  cats  to  ap- 
proach the  window. 

All  persons  who  will  have  fine  birds,  must 
be  exact  in  keeping  their  room  clean ;  also 
in  seeing  to  their  toe-nails  being  kept  pro- 
perly cut,  and  their  feet  not  clogged  up,  nor 
fouled  with  dirt.  Carefully  provide  against 
the  entrance  of  mice ;  they  poison  all  they 
touch. 

Mr.  Kipp,  of  Hammersmith,  England,  had 
an  aviary  on  a  large  scale,  having  at  one 
time  three  hundred  and  sixty-six  birds.  He 


CANARY  BIRDS.  87 

tried  many  experiments,  and  having,  more- 
over, not  a  high,  opinion  of  the  female  en- 
dowments, he  banished  all  hen  birds  from 
his  enclosure.  He  says,  "  It  is  deplorably 
odd  that  when  two  or  three  of  the  gentler 
sex  are  met  together,  they  can  never  be  long 
in  each  other's  company  without  there  being 
a  '  row.'  It  was  so  with  our  colony.  We 
thoughtlessly  left  the  ladies  and  gentlemen 
together,  and  the  results  were  awful;  but 
we  rectified  our  error.  Every  kdy  bird  was 
withdrawn,  and  the  gentlemen  vocalists  left 
alone  in  their  glory."  Mr.  Kidd  had  a  great 
variety  of  birds  together,  and  no  wonder 
they  quarrelled  and  fought;  besides,  there 
was  such  a  crowd  that  their  nests  were  rob- 
bed and  destroyed  by  those  whose  only  ex- 
cuse was,  that  "'twas  their  nature  to." 
There  was  a  "  thrush  that  was  ready  at  a 
moments  notice  to  '  assist 7  any  of  the  rival 
malcontents  in  a  crusade  against  the  eggs 
and  young.  No  sooner  were  the  latter  born 
— we  did  succeed  in  getting  a  few  broods 


88  CANARY  BIRDS. 

hatched — than  the  conspirators  went  to  work 
with  an  energy  and  unity  of  purpose  worthy 
of  a  better  cause.  Despite  the  vigorous  re- 
sistance of  the  parent  birds,  their  infant  off- 
spring were  remorselessly  dragged  from  their 
cradles,  suspended  in  mid-air  (like  Maho- 
met's coffin),  and  then  dashed  forcibly  to 
the  ground  ;  they  were  all  tried  and  banish- 
ed. The  sex  called  gentle  it  was  found 
needful  to  banish  for  ever." 

From  Mr.  Kidd's  own  account  it  was  not 
the  females  that  made  the  disturbance,  ex- 
cept as  they  were  the  objects  of  the  ferocity 
of  the  males,  but  the  latter  were  the  best 
songsters ; — therefore  the  martyrs  were  ba- 
nished. He  seems  to  consider  the  birds  as 
only  kept  for  song ;  but  no  amount  of  song 
would  compensate  us  for  missing  the  pretty 
sight  of  the  little  fledglings,  or  being  depriv 
ed  of  the  amusement  of  witnessing  the  court 
Bhips. 

As  interesting  a  fixed  aviary  as  any  I 
have  known,  is  formed  from  one  end  of  a 


CANARY  BIRDS.  89 

moderate  sized  conservatory.  The  space, 
about  twelve  feet  wide,  was  merely  wired 
off  with  galvanized  zinc  wire,  the  surround- 
ing glass  being  also  lined  with  wire.  The 
birds  here  gain  the  morning  sun,  but  in 
winter,  when  it  is  very  cold,  the  glass  walls 
are  screened  from  without  by  shutters. 

The  birds  in  such  a  position  are  very 
warmly  housed,  and  the  sweet  scent  of  the 
flowers  adds  greatly  to  their  pleasure.  In 
the  enclosed  space,  which  is  rather  narrow, 
a  row  of  evergreen  shrubs  is  placed  along 
the  back,  and  grouped  closely  at  each  cor- 
ner, the  higher  trees  nearly  reaching  the 
top ;  and  again  in  the  centre,  three  or  four 
more  are  grouped.  In  an  aviary  like  this, 
it  has  a  charming  effect  when  a  pretty  bath 
is  suspended  from  the  roof  in  one  of  the 
wire  baskets ;  by  the  use  of  some  strong 
cement  the  outside  may  be  made  pretty, 
ornamented  with  shells  and  coral,  like  the 
plaything  that  it  is ;  and  there  the  birds 

will  amuse  themselves  for  hours,  pretending 
8* 


90  CANARY  BIRDS. 

to  be  frightened,  and  putting  in  one  foot  and 
pulling  it  out  again,  behaving  for  all  the 
world  just  like  naughty  children. 

The  floor  being  formed  of  tiles  or  stone, 
and  the  walls  also  being  solid,  there  is  every 
reason  to  hope  that  further  precautions 
against  rats  and  mice  will  be  unnecessary. 
Their  presence  certainly  should  be  guarded 
against  with  every  care  imaginable.  The 
floor  should  be  covered  with  two  or  three 
inches  of  sand,  or  gravel,  or  old  mortar 
ground  fine.  Lime  or  gravel  is  about  the 
best  thing  birds  can  have  to  peck  at.  Ever- 
greens, stood  in  the  corners,  are  pleasant  to 
the  birds,  and  a  fountain  in  which  they  can 
bathe  is  very  pretty.  The  perches  should 
be  made  to  take  out  to  clean,  and  thoroughly 
dried.  They  should  be  perfectly  round  and 
polished,  that  the  birds  may  not  catch  their 
feet  in  any  kind  of  cranny.  Have  one  or 
two  perches  quite  high  up. 


CHAPTEK  IX. 

DISEASES  OF  CANARIES. 

t  gives  a  most  miserable  and  discouraged 
feeling  to  read  the  long  list  of  diseases 
incident  to  the  canary,  and  the  remedies  pro- 
posed for  them.  It  is  our  firm  belief  that 
most  of  these  maladies  are  the  result  of  bad 
management  or  neglect,  and  that  those  who 
really  love  their  birds  will  not  be  troubled 
by  many  of  them. 

It  is  very  touching  the  way  the  sick  birds 
cling  to  one  in  their  troubles ;  they  lie  look- 
ing at  one  for  help  so  pitifully,  takiag  so 
gently  the  offered  food,  and  always  seeming 
disposed  to  nestle  so  closely  to  one.  After 
all  I  can  say,  however,  I  can  but  repeat  my 
conviction  that  cleanliness,  watercress,  and 
abstinence  from  messes  are  the  best  means  of 
preserving  a  bird  in  health  ;  and  if,  after  all, 


92  CANARY  BIRDS. 

it  does  become  ill,  keeping  it  very  warm — 
not  roasted  before  the  fire,  but  nestled  in 
snugly — is  the  best  mode  of  both  comforting 
arid  curing  it. 

COLDS. — Canaries  have  a  peculiar  talent 
for  taking  colds,  and  are  heard  conversing 
in  the  hoarsest  notes.  They  also  frequently 
sneeze  and  shake  their  heads.  For  this, 
melon  seeds,  chopped  fine,  are  beneficial,  and 
a  piece  of  Spanish  liquorice  about  the  size 
of  a  pea,  dropped  into  the  water-glass,  is  a 
very  simple  remedy.  If,  however,  it  is  left 
there  long,  I  always  give  a  second  glass  of 
clean  water,  after  a  short  time  in  the  morn- 
ing, as  the  birds  begin  to  dislike  the  taste 
if  they  have  nothing  else  to  drink.  For 
sneezing,  produced  by  obstruction  of  the 
nostrils,  pass  a  very  fine  feather,  dipped  in 
olive  oil,  through  them. 

DECLINE. — This  disease,  the  symptoms  of 
which  are  a  general  roughness  of  the  feathers, 
a  great  appetite,  and  yet  a  gradual  wasting 
of  the  flesh — is  usually  the  result  of  an  un- 


CANARY  BIEDS.  93 

natural  diet,  which  impairs  the  digestive 
powers.  The  most  effectual  remedy,  besides 
supplying  the  patient  with  the  best  and  most 
natural  food,  is  to  make  it  swallow  a  spider 
which  will  act  as  a  purgative,  and  to  put  a 
rusty  nail  into  its  water-glass,  which  see'ms 
to  give  vigor  to  the  stomach  and  bowels. 
"Watercress  is  a  specific  for  decline  in  cana- 
ries. The  narrow  cage  which  prevents  much 
exercise,  and  the  sugar,  confectionery,  and 
other  dainties  given  them,  frequently  pro- 
duce decline. 

HUSKINESS  OR  Loss  OF  YoiCE. — Young 
males,  when  moulting,  are  frequently  so 
affected,  but  birds  of  all  ages  and  at  all  times 
may  be ;  a  cold  is  the  general  cause.  Never 
purchase  a  husky  bird :  you  may  be  told  it 
is  only  a  little  cold,  and  will  pass  off.  So  it 
may,  but  it  will  most  likely  return  before 
long,  and  become  a  chronic  disease,  ending 
in  decline.  The  remedial  measures  are: — 
Keep  the  bird  warm,  and  give  it  some  lin- 
seed with  its  rape  and  canary.  Every  morn- 


94:  CANARY  BIRDS. 

ing  it  should  have  a  small  teaspoonful  of 
warm  bread  and  milk,  and  now  and  then  a 
little  bit  of  sponge  cake  soaked  in  sherry 
wine. 

OVERGROWN  CLAWS  AND  BEAK.— These, 
although  scarcely  to  be  called  diseases,  some- 
times have  as  bad  an  effect  upon  the  health 
of  the  bird  as  if  they  were  really  such  ;  for 
the  consciousness  of  possessing  claws  and 
beak  of  an  undue  length,  and  the  fear  of 
getting  them  entangled  in  the  wires  of  the 
cage,  or  other  objects  about,  will  cause  it  to 
mope  and  refuse  its  food  :  therefore,  they 
should  be  properly  trimmed  with  a  pair  of 
sharp  scissors.  Care  should  be  taken  not  to 
cut  them  so  closely  as  to  produce  blood. 
This  may  always  be  avoided  by  holding  the 
claw  to  be  operated  on  up  to  the  light,  and 
seeing  how  far  down  the  toes  the  vessels  ex- 
tend. Your  grasp  of  the  bird  should  be 
firm,  yet  very  gentle,  and  all  that  you  do 
should  be  done  without  haste  or  trepidation. 

WOODEN  SHOES,  it  is  a  real  pleasure  to 


CANARY  BIRDS.  95 

cure,  it  is  so  pleasant  to  see  the  bird's  relief 
when  the  load  falls  off.  This  discomfort 
arises  from  a  damp  or  dirty  cage,  or  one  not 
sufficiently  supplied  with  clean  gravel ;  when 
the  feet  become  perfectly  clogged  with  a 
sort  of  dirty  shoe.  When  bought  with 
clogged  feet  an  immediate  cure  should  be  at- 
tempted ;  we  take  it  for  granted  no  one  will 
allow  their  own  birds  to  get  into  such  a  con- 
dition. Take  a  saucer,  containing  lukewarm 
soft  water,  not  hot,  but  tepid,  and  then  care- 
fully catching  the  bird  in  one  hand  cause  it 
to  stand  for  at  least  five  minutes,  if  possible, 
in  its  shallow  bath. 

To  take  hold  of  the  bird  without  burting 
it,  it  is  very  essential  to  keep  the  hand  quite 
outside  the  wings ;  watching  an  opportunity 
for  lightly  closing  it  when  the  bird  has  both 
its  wings  folded.  It  is  best  to  keep  the  head 
over  the  thumb ;  and  as  the  feet  are  very 
often  tucked  up  just  when  we  want  them 
down,  the  mistress's  hand  is  usually  forced 
to  take  a  bath  with  the  bird.  Jenny,  one 


96  CANAR7  BIBDS. 

of  my  pets,  was  extremely  bad  when  I  got 
her ;  but  after  three  days  of  this  treatment, 
she  was  as  comfortable  as  could  be;  and 
considering  how  she  pecked  and  screamed 
at  being  caught  at  first,  it  was  very  amusing 
to  witness  her  complacency  as  her  shoes 
wore  out.  I  always  present  the  patients 
with  hemp-seeds  while  in  the  bath ;  some- 
times they  only  hold  them  (taking  them 
back  to  their  cage  to  eat) ;  but  at  any  rate  it 
assures  them  that  people  who  give  them 
such  delicious  things,  cannot  possibly  mean 
harm. 

There  should  be  always  a  little  bed  of 
rather  fine  dry  oatmeal  for  the  bird  to  stand 
on  for  a  moment  when  its  bath  is  over ;  this 
dries  the  feet,  and  in  all  ways  is  useful, 
while  its  dusting  the  feathers  does  not  the 
slightest  harm. 

BROKEN  LIMBS. — When  a  bird  meets 
with  an  accident  of  this  kind,  it  should  be 
taken  very  tenderly  and  placed  in  a  cage 
without  perches,  with  a  little  soft  hay  or 


CANARY  BIRDS.  97 

flannel  (anything  thready  or  hairy  must  be 
avoided,  as  the  bird  is  apt  to  get  its  feet  en- 
tangled) to  lie  upon,  and  its  seed  and  water- 
cups  on  the  floor  near  it  so  that  it  may  help 
itself  without  being  obliged  to  flutter  about, 
sprinkle  some  of  the  seed  about  on  the  floor 
of  the  cage  also.  Plenty  of  green  stuff, 
chickweed  and  watercress,  may  be  given  at 
such  times.  Warmth  and  quiet  with  this 
treatment  will,  with  the  aid  of  nature,  often 
effect  a  cure  in  a  few  days. 

A  strange  cat  last  winter  by  some  extra- 
ordinary means  made  its  way  into  my  room 
one  evening  in  the  twilight,  and  before  I 
knew  of  its  presence,  it  had  sprung  upon 
and  knocked  down  a  cage  from  a  table  near. 
One  bird  flew  away  unhurt,  but  the  other 
was  injured  by  the  falling  cage,  and  had  its 
leg  broken.  It  was  taken  up  and  given  to 
me  quite  gently,  and  without  even  attempt- 
ing then  to  examine  the  injury,  I  laid  it  in  a 
cage  just  such  as  I  described,  and  kept  it 

close  beside  me  for  the  next  ten  days :  talk- 
9 


98  CANARY  BIRDS. 

irnQ  to  it  seeming  to  comfort  and  amuse  it 
mightily.  The  leg  was  stiff  and  useless  for 
a  long  time  after,  but  when  once  it  had 
begun  to  bathe,  the  recovery  was  rapid,  and 
the  bird  now  is  a  very  fine  and  healthy  one, 
and  has  built  arid  hatched  this  summer. 

In  the  spring  of  the  year  birds  sometimes 
become  mopish,  and  without  any  apparent 
cause  stop  singing  and  allow  their  feathers 
to  become,  and  to  continue  ruffled.  Hang- 
ing the  bird  in  the  window,  or  near  some 
green  plants,  will  often  effect  a  change. 

FITS. — Sometimes,  especially  if  a  bird 
builds  early  in  the  year  while  the  weather  is 
cold,  she  will  be  subject  to  a  sort  of  fit  when 
she  begins  to  lay  her  eggs  or  sits ;  probably 
cold  weather  renders  her  much  more  ex- 
hausted. In  the  cold  spring  this  year,  one 
of  my  birds  was  very  ill  indeed  ;  she  lay  on 
her  side  with  all  her  feathers  fluffed  out,  and 
did  not  even  stir  when  her  mate  in  the  ex- 
cess of  his  affectionate  disquietude  perched 
himself  on  her  shoulder,  and  setting  his  feet 


CANARY  BIRDS.  99 

firmly  together,  took  her  wing  in  his  beak 
and  tugged  it  with  all  his  might  to  induce 
her  to  get  up.  I  thought  such  nursing, 
however,  might  be  dispensed  with,  so  hav- 
ing got  some  warm  water,  and  with  exceed- 
ingly great  care  given  the  bird  a  bath  (of 
course  holding  her  in  my  hand  the  while),  I 
wrapped  her  up,  insensible  as  she  was,  in  a 
very  warm  piece  of  flannel,  and  having  kept 
her  warm  all  day,  I  had  the  pleasure  at  night 
of  seeing  her  eating  crumbs  of  sponge  bis- 
cuit (which  was  her  favorite  refreshment), 
with  considerable  appetite.  She  has  never, 
I  am  sure,  forgotten  that  day's  nursing,  for 
she  is  the  only  bird  who  now  makes  no  fuss 
at  all  if  I  take  her  up.  The  others  kick 
and  scratch  and  peck  as  hard  as  they  can, 
maintaining  firmly  the  difference  between 
being  taken,  and  coming  of  themselves. 

GAPES. — Young  birds  are  excessively 
liable  to  a  disease  which  resembles  that 
called  in  poultry  "the  gapes,"  though  it 
does  not  seem  to  be  at  all  the  same  thing  in 


100  CANARY  BIRDS. 

reality.  The  bird  mopes  and  is  uncomfort- 
able, ruffles  up  its  feathers,  and  keeps  open- 
ing its  bill  as  if  it  wanted  air.  The  bill  is 
generally  dry  and  yellowish  underneath  the 
eyes,  and  the  bird  has  a  generally  miserable 
look  about  it  suggestive  of  its  real  disease, 
an  exceedingly  bad  cold.  Some  strong 
black  tea  without  milk,  linseed,  poppy  seed, 
plenty  of  green  stun0,  and  a  little  liquorice 
in  the  water,  are  amongst  the  best  remedies, 
but  perfect  warmth  is  the  greatest  requisite. 
I  think  this  complaint  is  contagious,  and, 
therefore,  should  always  recommend  remov- 
ing any  other  birds  from  the  same  cage,  or 
if  in  an  aviary,  placing  the  sick  bird  in  hos- 
pital. 

PARASITIC  INSECTS. — Canaries  who  are 
diseased,  or  not  kept  clean,  are  apt  to 
be  troubled  with  small  yellow  lice  in  the 
skin,  or  hid  among  the  feathers.  The  birds 
are  constantly  restless,  and  peck  at  different 
parts  of  their  bodies.  Frequent  bathing,  or 
water  from  a  syringe,  and  a  little  aniseed 


CANARY  BIRDS.  1Q1 

mixed  with  the  gravel  on  the  floor,  are  the 
best  preventives. 

I  once  bought  two  birds  at  the  door  which 
were  evidently  made  very  uncomfortable  by 
a  torment  arising  from  want  of  bathing — 
very  minute  red  insects  Kke  cheese  mites, 
which  were  amongst  their  feathers.  Newly- 
bought  birds,  for  fear  of  such  annoyances, 
should  never  be  mixed  at  first  with  others, 
unless  they  are  obtained  from  a  dealer  on 
whom  one  can  depend. 

EGG-KUPTUBE  consists  of  an  obstruction 
of  the  passage  through  which  the  eggs  are 
ejected,  and  most  frequently  proves  fatal ; 
she  often  fancies  she  has  laid,  and  broods 
upon  an  empty  nest :  a  few  drops  of  olive 
oil  applied  to  the  vent  is  one  of  the  best 
remedies.  Great  care  must  be  taken  in  han- 
dling the  bird,  or  the  confined  egg  may  be 
broken,  a  catastrophe  that  would  probably 
cause  immediate  death.  After  the  remedy 
has  been  applied,  do  not  let  her  loose,  but 

place  her  gently  upon  the  nest,  and  she  may 
9* 


102  CANARY  BIRDS. 

then  be  able  to  lay  the  egg  easily.  A  warm 
bath  is  also  very  good. 

CANCER,  unless  arrested  before  it  becomes 
developed,  is  a  fatal  disease,  and  is  thought 
to  be  contagious  (it  will  be  better  to  separate 
the  infected  bird  from  its  companions  at 
once).  It  always  attacks  the  foot  or  the  bill, 
which  become  much  swollen.  The  curative 
process  is  to  keep  the  cage  constantly  clean, 
so  that  no  particles  of  dust  or  dirt  may  ad- 
here to  the  scirrhous  part,  and  to  bathe  it 
frequently  with  sweet  or  olive  oil,  and  wash 
with  lukewarm  milk. 

WANT  OF  APPETITE  usually  occurs  after 
breeding,  moulting,  or  other  sickness :  in 
this  case  take  about  equal  parts  of  millet, 
canary,  rape,  yellow,  and  a  little  hemp-seed, 
mixed  with  the  same  quantity  of  clean 
moistened  garden  loam  ;  knead  well  to- 
gether, then  dry  the  composition,  cut  it  up 
in  small  pieces,  and  feed  it  as  required ;  it 
will  keep  a  long  time. 

SCABS  ON  THE  HEAD  may  be  best  and 


CANAE  Y  BIRDS.  103 

most  easily  cured  by  feeding  on  light  and 
cooling  food,  such  as  lettuce  and  rape-seed. 

EPILEPSY  is  brought  on  by  too  rich  food. 
Keep  the  bird  quiet  and  free  from  sudden 
alarms,  and  feed  on  lettuce,  rape,  and  canary- 
seed.  Give  no  hemp-seed  for  a  while ;  it  is 
always  fatal. 

MOULTING  is  always  a  trying  time ;  it  is 
sometimes  dangerous  to  young  birds ;  it 
commences  when  they  are  from  six  weeks 
to  two  months  old,  and  lasts  several  weeks. 
You  will  observe  that  the  birds  lose  their 
natural  vivacity,  and  sit  moping  about  with 
their  heads  under  their  wings,  and  soon  the 
bottom  of  the  cage  will  be  strewed  with  the 
shed  feathers.  All  you  have  then  to  do  is 
to  keep  them  q.uiet,  and  free  from  draughts. 
At  this  time  they  require  warmth,  and  as 
they  have  little  appetite,  it  is  better  to  give 
them  as  much  variety  in  their  food  as  possi- 
ble, also  being  careful  to  crush  for  them 
any  hard  kind  of  seed  like  hemp,  as  they 
are  very  weak.  A  rusty  nail  or  a  shred  of 


1 04  CANAE  Y  2IRDS. 

saffron  in  the  water  glass  is  a  useful  tonic. 
And  if  the  bird  should  be  attacked  with  any 
sort  of  fit,  some  authorities  recommend  dip- 
ping its  feet  in  warm  water,  or  dashing  a 
little  cold  water  over  it. 

Hang  them  in  the  sunshine,  and  give  them 
any  nourishing  food  they  may  fancy.  Let 
them  have  a  lump  of  sugar  to  peck  at. 
Supply  them  with  green  food,  and  keep  the 
floor  covered  with  sand  or  gravel. 

If  the  moulting  proves  unusually  tedious 
and  distressing  to  the  bird,. it  may  have  some 
sponge  cake  soaked  in  sherry  wine ;  very 
little  wine,  and  some  of  the  wine  might  be 
blown  over  its  feathers. 

DIARRHOEA.— This  is  frequently  a  fatal 
disease  with  canaries,  as  with  other  cage 
birds.  The  bird  attacked  with  it  constantly 
voids  a  white  fluid  matter,  which  causes 
great  inflammation  of  the  rectum.  The  best 
remedial  measures  are  as  much  natural  food 
as  possible.  A  rusty  nail  placed  in  the 
drinking  cup,  and  a  little  hard-boiled  egg, 


CANARY  BIRDS.  105 

may  be  given.  A  piece  of  chalk  may  be 
put  between  the  bars  of  the  cage  for  the 
bird  to  nibble,  or  some  scraped  chalk  scat- 
tered on  the  floor.  If  these  remedies  fail, 
I  have  not  much  faith  in  anything  else. 
Green  food  to  be  omitted. 

CONSTIPATION  is  most  effectually  relieved 
by  green  food. 

RUPTURE  OR  SURFEIT  is  not  uncommon 
with  improperly  fed  birds,  from  their  eating 
too  much  food,  though  of  nourishing  kinds, 
producing  an  inflammation  of  the  bowels. 
Belief  is  sometimes  obtained  by  a  spare  diet, 
with  a  little  salt,  alum,  or  a  rusty  nail  in  the 
drinking  vessel ;  anoint  any  skin  which  has 
become  bare  with  lard. 

ACCIDENTS. — The  best  way  to  accustom 
a  bird  to  fly,  when  it  is  old  enough  to  do  so, 
is  to  let  out  a  few  of  those  who  are  quite 
accustomed  to  it,  and  then,  having  drawn 
down  the  blinds,  or,  still  better,  closed  any 
muslin  curtains,  the  bird  will  hop  out  of  its 
cage  peaceably,  and  when  it  has  once  exa- 


306  CANARY  BIKDS. 

mined  the  room  well,  will  ware  glass  suffi- 
ciently. 

If  unfortunate  accidents  do,  however,  hap- 
pen to  birds  getting  loose,  I  think  the  best 
thing  that  can  be  done  is  merely  to  keep 
them  wrapped  up  warmly  for  a  day  or  two, 
feedirhg  them  with  egg  or  milk  from  a  quill, 
if  their  heads  have  been  badly  bruised,  as 
often  happens.  Should  they  meet  with  a 
fall  or  blow  so  severe  as  to  stun  them  in 
their  rapid  flight,  a  few  moments  genera-lly  are 
sufficient  to  bring  them  to  themselves,  and 
they  must  be  held  in  the  hand  or  put  into  a 
soft  cage  to  recover,  as  otherwise  they  begin 
at  once  to  beat  about  in  a  great  fright :  a 
little  cold  water  dropped  on  the  head  and 
bill,  is  the  best  thing  for  them ;  and  after 
such  escapades,  the  cage  should  be  shaded 
for  an  hour  or  two  to  give  the  patient  a 
little  time  to  rest,  when,  if  it  is  not  seriously 
injured,  it  will  soon  be  again  quite  comfort- 
able. 
OBSTRUCTION  OF  THE  BUMP  GLAND. — ID 


CANARY  BIRDS.  1Q7 

every  bird  there  is  a  gland  just  above  the 
tail,  which  secretes  the  oily  substance  neces- 
sary for  oiling  the  feathers,  and  preserving 
them  from  the  effects  of  rain.  As  in  capti- 
vity birds  rarely  get  wet,  they  sometimes 
neglect  to  use  this  gland,  and  it  swells,  dries 
up,  and  even  ulcerates.  The  bird  sits  still, 
with  the  tail  bent  downwards,  and  frequently 
pecking  at  the  rough  feathers  on  the  affected 
part.  Apply  an  ointment  of  uusalted  butter 
and  sugar,  or  enlarge  the  opening  of  the 
gland  with  a  needle ;  but  the  latter,  though 
it  cure  the  disease,  destroys  the  gland,  and 
the  next  moulting  season  the  bird  dies  for 
want  of  the  oil  to  soften  the  feathers.  An 
ointment  to  be  procured  at  the  druggists'  is 
effectual.  It  is  composed  of  litharge,  white 
lead,  wine,  and  olive  oil. 

We  have  now  given  a  tolerably  complete 
list  of  the  ills  and  casualties  of  canary  life 
in  a  state  of  confinement,  with  their  appro- 
priate remedies ;  though  we  think  that,  so 
far  as  ladies  are  concerned,  the  non-doctor- 


108  CANARY  BIRDS. 

ing  system  is  the  best,  as  they  may  be  en- 
tirely mistaken  as  to  the  nature  of  the  dis- 
ease with  which  their  birds  are  affected,  and 
give  medicine  that  would  take  life.  With 
moderate  but  constant  care  of  their  little 
pets,  proper  food  and  cleanliness,  they  will 
rarely  have  to  refer  to  this  part  of  my  book. 
The  canary  is  not  a  delicate  bird  by  any 
means ;  but  if  properly  cared  for,  will  keep 
in  good  health  and  full  power  of  song  for 
many  years. 

The  love  of  birds,  and  the  increasing  num- 
ber of  ladies  and  gentlemen  who  possess 
these  little  enliveners  of  the  house,  has  called 
for  this  book,  which  we  hope  will  make 
bird- keeping  as  easy  as  it  is  delightful. 


C4NAR  T  BIRDS.  1  Q9 


CHAPTER  X. 

WANTS  OF  BIRD-KEEPERS. 

ntongst  the  various  things  found  useful 
n  keeping  birds,  I  may  mention,  first, 
the  cages,  varying  from  the  cheapest  and  com- 
monest forms  to  the  largest  and  most  elaborate 
aviaries — these  have  been  herein  described. 

A  tray  for  placing  all  the  apparatus  on. 

A  few  tin  canisters,  or  glass  preserve- 
jars,  or  even  common  bottles,  without  corks, 
for  containing  the  seeds  ;  "  without  corks," 
because  of  the  danger  of  small  pieces  being 
swallowed  by  the  birds  ;  glass  stoppers  may 
be  used. 

A  bread-grater  is  essential ;  and  if  there 
are  many  birds,  a  small  marble  mortar  will 
be  serviceable,  for  rubbing  down  hard-boiled 
eggs.  A  coffee-mill  will  be  useful,  because 
easier  to  work  than  a  mortar. 
10 


110  CANARY  BIRDS. 

A  glass  dish  for  a  bath ;  with  a  wire  bas- 
ket, for  suspending  it  in  the  aviary. 

A  sieve,  for  sifting  the  seed  or  sand  from 
the  husks  or  dirt,  will  be  wanted. 

A  piece  of  hard  wood,  twelve  inches 
square,  made  on  the  principle  of  what 
housekeepers  call  a  chopping-board ;  that 
is,  having  a  back  to  it,  and  a  low  strip  or 
wall  on  each  side.  On  this  place  your  hemp- 
seed,  to  crush  it  with  a  hard  rolling-pin. 
After  using  it,  scrape  and  scald  the  board. 

A  spatula,  or  apothecary's  knife,  and  a 
glass  spoon,  both  of  which  must  be  kept 
sweet  and  clean. 

To  cleanse  the  floor  of  an  aviary  by  re- 
moving the  sand,  a  hoe  will  be  needed.  A 
trowel  also,  for  scraping  the  corners  of  the 
floor. 

The  sand  should  be  coarse,  or  rather 
gravel. 

Of  course,  you  will  keep  well  supplied 
with  sponges,  flannels,  nail-brushes,  seed 
glasses,  to  replace  broken  ones. 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below, 
or  on  the  date  to  which  renewed.  Renewals  only: 

Tel.  No.  642-3405 

Renewals  may  be  made  4  days  prior  to  date  due. 
Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


0 


JON 


/. 


;ia,  AUG  2  5  'ii 


, . 


LD2lA-30m-10,'73 
(R3728slO)476— A-30 


